


Water and Air

by Sageandshit



Series: It is written in the Stars [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Astrology, Black Lavender Brown, Cute, F/M, Good God, Harry Potter - Freeform, Harry Potter smut, Hinny, Minor Lavender Brown/Parvati Patil, Pisces - Freeform, Smut, Werewolf Lavender Brown, aquarius, beeeeeeetch i hope it don't suck, dramione - Freeform, gay seamus, lol, romantic, runa - Freeform, there went a full day of my life, woops i made a fanfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-19
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-08-25 20:09:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 38,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16667497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sageandshit/pseuds/Sageandshit
Summary: Ron Billius Weasley.  The youngest Weasley brother and often the most overlooked.  After years of attempting to live up to the shadow everyone around him has left, including his best friend and his genius girlfriend Ron finds solace in the last person he expects... Dreamy, ditzy Luna Lovegood.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! All these characters and pairings are based on as close to accurate as possible natal-charts that I drew up for them. I had a lot of fun making this and I hope it's as fun to read as it was to dream up! These characters aren't my usual OTPs lol but I think that's why it was even more fun for me to dive into.  
> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed at least some aspect!
> 
> (This work in not complete! I will be adding chapters as I go!)

Muggle music filled the flat in the same way that the late spring air did. It blew threw the windows and circled around the herbs and plants that hung from the ceiling and off of the walls making the flats look like an urban jungle. A girl with dirty blonde hair that trailed down to her lower back sat, in lacy red underwear, straddled atop a gangly, freckled redhead.  
She threw her head back and gave a raucous laugh that seemed to attach itself just as easily as the music to the spring breeze.  
"Are you serious?" A crooked grin broke across the freckled face exposing one chipped tooth, Luna's favorite tooth. She put his chin between her thumb and pointer finger and laughed harder, peering into Ron's clear blue eyes. "Honestly, Looney." Ron placed his hands on her butt and scooched her as close as humanly possible to him. "You laugh so hard at the most mental shit." Yet the ringing of her laughter made his grin widen before he put his hand on the back of her neck and pulled her into a warm, soft kiss and started moving his hips to the rhythm of a soulful voice that rippled through the May morning. Luna stopped laughing but let out a small moan, pulling back while Ron tugged on her bottom lip with his teeth. She looked into his face with her doe-like eyes and raised an eyebrow. That was it. She could see it change in his face.  
Ron was no longer thinking about his actions and movements now. Instinct had kicked in. He grabbed her ass, pushed into her as he stood from the couch, her legs straddling him. He walked over to the canopied bed that he made fun of so much, dropped her onto her back and watched her laugh as she bounced slightly from the fall. He raised one eyebrow and asked "Think this is a game, Lovegood?"  
She perched herself up on her elbows to get a good look at Ron's long, strong body and the freckles that dotted it like the constellations that kept her up until 3am some nights. She looked directly into her eyes with a devilish grin and said "Yes, Weasley. I positively do." He dropped down onto his knees and inched toward the bed. Luna's heartbeat a little faster. He could call her Looney all day long she couldn't really care less what nicknames he preferred for her. As long as he kept on like this.  
Ron reached the edge of Luna's bed and pulled one of her legs outward. He traced his fingers around her thigh in circles and abstract shapes both tickling Luna and making her tingle with lust. She watched him look up to check that her breathing had softened and deepened. He traced his fingers higher. Her alarm for work started to go off. He slipped both index fingers under her red lacy underwear and asked her in a much different tone than he had used on her earlier if she'd prefer him to stop what he was doing so she could get ready.  
"No." She stated plainly. Ron loved when Dreamy Luna became Decisive Luna. When soft and airy Luna turned into needy and sexy.  
He pulled her underwear down, living for the moment she lifted her hips so he could slide his hands beneath her and grab her ass. He leaned into her and gave her a knowing smile before he traced his tongue, soft and warm, around her clitoris. He moaned into her, he loved tasting her. She was so different than anyone he'd ever been with. She tasted like flowers and rain and springtime. He continued expressing his pleasure because he knew she loved the vibrations. He heard her fumbling for something to grab.  
"Anything but that." He had said the first time they clumsily slept together, drunk off of firewhisky and Mugwort Mead. She had woven her fingers through his hair and tugged, pulling, what felt like, most of his hair follicles out of his scalp.  
She grabbed the duvet cover and watched her knuckles go white as she moved her hips in coordination with his tongue. He watched her struggle not to cum as explored her with his tongue and fingers.  
"Ron," She breathed. He interpreted it as needing more and kept going.  
"No Ron," She said once more, breathlessly. He pulled away. She smiled and summoned him closer to her with a finger. He laughed.  
"That's it, Luna?" He mimed checking a watch but she was already upright, helping him to his feet. he slid his briefs down his legs, taking him in her mouth and throwing him off track. "Jesus." He accidentally yelled aloud, causing her to giggle. "Couldn't- Christ. Little warning, Lu- fuck. Okay. Cool." He grabbed a post of the canopied bed and felt himself melting away on her tongue as she moved up and down his fully hard cock. Her windows were open and he couldn't help but wonder what the fuck this could possibly look like to the neighbors. He imagined, momentarily, if he could pull off a casual wave if anyone on the street looked up and chortled to himself but immediately forgot what he was laughing about as she started this swallowing motion that made her throat tighten up in the most delicious way. He felt his knees start to shake.  
"Nope! Merlin's fucking sake, L. You are not going to kill me like that." He pulled her up from the floor and pushed her back on the bed. She pushed herself up and took her bra off about thirty seconds faster than Ron had ever been able to. He was grateful. Her breasts were perfection. He moved onto the bed and over her, loving the way she made him feel protective and strong. She laid under him and smiled up at him with a goofy grin.  
"What?" He whispered down to her, not really caring for an answer. He just liked staring at the dreamy pixie face.  
"You." She leaned up and whispered back, making him shiver. She pulled him down into a kiss while grabbing his dick and guiding it into her. He growled into her mouth and started thrusting. The canopied matching the rhythm of his movements, making certain that anyone who peered up into that exact window knew exactly what was going on.

 

*five weeks earlier*

"Come off it, mate. I'd be mental to spend the first night Ginny's back with the both of you." Ron sighed as Harry sat on his couch, attempting persuasion.  
"Ron- you sit here when you're not at work and, to be honest, it's a bit depressing. You know Hermione and Ginny spent the last three months in Bulgaria. It's not like you haven't had enough time to move on." But he definitely hadn't. Ron spent his latter years at Hogwarts worrying that he wasn't good enough for Hermione. He spent the two years after Hogwarts trying to outdo the guys that Hermione was surrounded by at the ministry. He spent his entire life trying to exceed or at least live up to the reputation of any of his brothers- hoping taking a job at the joke shop with George would help his brother heal from the loss of Fred. Ron just felt so spread thin. Trying to live up to everyone's expectation while being accepted for his own.  
He'd definitely let his jealousy get the best of him. He spent the last three minds sorting through the stupid rows he insisted on having most weekends. The last massive one that ended in Hermione packing the pajamas from his top drawer in her enchanted purse and screaming at him, her warm brown eyes filled with tears of hurt and frustration.  
"RON STOP IT!" She screamed. "I thought this was through." She sobbed, her bag hanging from her hand and her chest heaving. "You told me you worked through this the winter we went horcrux hunting. Why have we gone over this at least once a month since the war?"  
"WHY ARE YOU STILL TALKING TO KRUM?!" Ron threw the glass orb he was spitefully going to hand to Hermione while she stood there, a sneakoscope given to him on their first night together after she secured a spot as an intern at the ministry of magic. He regretted it immediately as he watched her shrink back from him. Something in her face changed had changed from loving anger to fear and distrust.  
"I've always told you we were going to remain friends, Ron... He loves you." She whimpered but her breathing was gathering speed and he saw a force building behind her eyes. "I've supported you since we were 11. I've spent my entire youth making sure you felt included and never second to anyone, Harry included." He watched her knuckles whiten as she tightened her grip on her purse. "I've wasted my teens watching you get up over Lavender Fucking Brown While I waited for you to realize that I was special, Ron. You never had to watch me suck the tongue of another guy in the FUCKING COMMON ROOM." Ron shrank back as Hermione's voice raised in volume and shrillness. "Oh no, Ronald Weasley- don't you dare act like I'm the volatile one here. Remember when Fred died- don't wince. He died, Ron. He died. Just like saying Voldemort. Everyone has to make you feel safe, Ron. I'm tired. I spent my entire life proving you're the only man I want to be with yet every night I go for drinks after work I have to answer question after question. I'm done." The words left her lips and he watched the resolve in her eyes and he fucking hated himself. He knew he had pushed her to this point.  
He had tried to. He knew this was coming for months. He was pushing her away. He opened his mouth to say anything- apologize, ask her to wait, get her to forget this fight ever happened- but she raised her hand in swift motion, waving away his attempt to speak.  
"No. You've done it. Self-fulfilling prophecy Ron." He pushed her bag up her arm to hang off of her shoulder and she turned to grab the doorknob. "I need some time. A lot of time." She pushed the door open and left, not looking back at him once. 

"MATE." Harry snapped a finger, bringing Ron's attention back to present.  
"Shit, sorry Harry." He realized he had been completely absent while Harry walked around his kitchen, opening Ron's fridge and pantries make them both sandwiches.  
"Yeah." Harry used the back of his hand, knife still in grasp, to wipe his forehead and push his hair out of his eyes. "You've been a space case for ages, Ron. Y'think maybe you ought to see someone?"  
"A healer?" Ron stared at his dirty nails while he answered.  
"Yeah. A healer- muggles use therapists, Ron. Therapists are literally paid to listen to you talk about your feelings." Ron gave Harry a bemused look.  
"What nutters." He laughed but Harry looked at him, sincerely.  
"I went to one, mate."  
"What?"  
"Yeah," Harry set a sandwich down in front of Ron that looked like a really good attempt at his mother's level of cooking. "I had a really hard time opening up to Ginny when I got back." Harry said through a mouthful of sandwich, with mayonnaise on his lip. "Dudley reached out of me shortly after, as well, making sure if I was still alive." Harry chuckled. "He told me he had started university and had started speaking to the school counselor. Who knew Dudley had actual emotions?" Harry continued to chortle while Ron, for the first time in days, noticed his stomach growling and lifted his sandwich to his mouth.  
"Is he still huge?" Ron asked, offhand, wanting a lighter subject.  
"Oh, mate. He's had a rough go of it but he's figuring out his stuff. He also said since he's moved out he isn't bombarded with cakes and roasts every night, though." 

 

Ron regretted it immediately. Ginny pushed the door open to the pub and rain splattered the welcome mat. Behind her was Luna Lovegood and Katie Bell.  
"Harry! Ron!" She laughed, heartily, and threw her arms around the both of them as she threw the bartender a little wave.  
"Ginny." Bill said, while grabbing a glass off of the shelf. "Firewhiskey?"  
"Of course, Billy!" She laughed.  
"Thought maybe Bulgaria might've changed your tastes."  
"It did." She smiled, mischievously. "I want it neat, these days."  
"Blimey, Gin." Ron nudged her with his elbows. "You're drinking like Charlie."  
"Somebody is the family has to have taste."  
"So tell us about training, Gin." Harry said, scooting his bar stool closer to Ron to make room for the three girls.  
"Krum killed her!" Katie laughed. "The Holyhead Harpies are going to have to bump her to first string chaser when they see the new moves she pulled on me in the pitch yesterday!"  
"You were back yesterday? I thought you got in this morning." Harry shot ginny a questioning glance.  
"Calm down, bedhead." She scruffed his hair and leaned in for a deep kiss that made Ron shudder with disgust. "I wanted to be completely rested up when I saw you. Also shut up Ron. We've sat through many a Christmas where Fleur snogs Bill. I could up my game if you'd like."  
"No. God no." He winced, remembering.  
"We spotted Luna at Flourish & Blotts! We stopped in to invite her down." Ginny smiled at everyone  
"Yeah, we haven't seen Looney's since Fred's... y'know." Ron trailed off and raised his glass out of respect for his late brother.  
"Ron." Ginny shot him a warning glare. "Don't call her that."  
"It's okay, Ginny." Luna threw him and airy smile and said "Roonil loves a good laugh."  
"Oh my god!" Harry choked on his butterbeer. "I forgot about that."  
"Yeah yeah." Ron's cheeks reddened and he lifted his glass to Luna now, "Cheers Lovegood, fair game."

 

"Another round for this lot!" Ginny stood from the circular table they now presided over and Bill nodded. A tray of fire whiskeys swiftly cut through the air and settled on the table, not a single drop wasted.  
"AYYY!" A chorus of applause for Bill let out. Luna was laughing a throaty laugh that took Ron aback. He had never heard her voice go deeper than the level of a bird's chirp before.  
"So Ron," She noticed his eyes had landed on her and he, for some reason, became quickly embarrassed, averting his glance. "Where's Hermione?" The table quieted.  
"Sorry, Ron, we hadn't told her." Ginny blurted and Harry cleared his throat.  
"S'Alright." Ron straightened up. "We broke up."  
"Oooh..." Her giant orbish eyes moved from his down his chest and then quickly to the table. "Sorry about that." She traced the lip of her glass with her fingers. "I've missed a lot when I moved."  
"Yeah, how was America?" Ron felt this change of topic rather naturally. For once he didn't feel his stomach knot up at the thought of Hermione and her spending three winter months snuggled up in Bulgaria while her first high school flame tutored his sister.  
"Oh it was splendid. I spent most of the past two years in New York."  
"I thought you were only going for a year?" Ginny questioned her.  
"I stayed." Luna shrugged. "I met someone."  
"Oh?" Ron leaned in. "Who's the lucky bastard?" Ron laughed. "I always thought you and Neville could have had something."  
"Ooh." Luna laughed. "He's a wonderful friend, I'm invited to his wedding next year-"  
"NEVILLE'S GETTING MARRIED?!" Ginny slammed a fist down on the table. "I feel horrible." She looked thoroughly flummoxed.  
"He hasn't told anyone yet!" Luna assured her, dreamily. "We write eachother once a week since we left school. Hannah Abbott and he started dating when she starting working at the apothecary. He spends a lot of time there, you know."  
"Hannah Abbott?" Harry thought aloud. "She was the mousey blonde hufflepuff that joined the DA, right?"  
"Exactly." Luna went on. "He's going to propose to her in a few weeks time and he hopes they'll be married within the year because he has a splendid trip booked." SHe sighed. "He's going to take her to South America to spend a month in the jungle gathering studying herbs and gathering seedlings so he can start his own garden. He wants it to be their honeymoon."  
"What a shotty honeymoon." Ron pushed away his empty firewhiskey glass. "Getting all stinky and sweaty next to the person you just vowed your life too while getting eaten alive by insects and worrying if you're going to step on snakes? I'd turn him down."  
Luna started laughing so hard, firewhiskey shot out of her nose, "I just spent the year traveling with Rolf and we broke up over it."  
"Oh yeah!" Ron sat up, interest renewed. "We were talking about Luna's love life."  
"I haven't got one anymore!" Luna pushed his arm and he felt a swoop in his chest. He wasn't liking Looney Lovegood or anything, it was just the firewhiskey, he stated to himself in his mind. "We spent a year studying his great grandfather's journals and then another year chasing beasts that nobody has proven existed." She said, simply. "And although I loved it I missed home, as well." She shrugged. "We simply disagreed about our ideas of home and I said I needed a break."  
"Oh I'm sorry Luna." Ginny put a hand on Luna's arm. "I saw your posts together on the wizarding web. He was right handsome."  
"Yeah, he was downright wonderful." Luna said dreamily. "It's okay. Ending love isn't always permanent." She pushed her now-empty glass to the center of the table like Ron had. "Anyone for another round? My treat?" She said with a bribing look around the table.  
"We've got early practice," Katie sighed. "And all this talk about romance is making me miss Alicia like crazy." She looked down at her watch.  
"She's right." Ginny sighed. "I can't be completely undone my first day back or they won't ever let me take training holidays again." She stood up and stretched, looking at Harry.  
"We all know I'm leaving when she is." Harry smiled up at Ginny and she caressed his cheek.  
"Well I'd love another one." Ron smiled at Luna.  
"That settles it." Luna smiles. "On one condition."  
"What?"  
"We're going to muggle London." She smirked. "I just love this little tavern and I've been dying to take a fellow wizard there since I've gotten back."

 

After many assurances that he would get Luna home safely to Ginny Ron and Luna stepped out onto the wet pavement and breathed in the night air, clean from a day of rain.  
"I love this smell." Luna smiled up at the now cloudless sky. "Ready?"  
"Okay, don't judge me," He started. "I never actually got my apparition license."  
Luna started laughing to his bemusement.  
"Okay, Luna, if you're arm had been mangled almost to the point of no return you'd be a little reserved about it, too."  
"Ron, It's fine." SHe said, still laughing. "Floor powder just won't work if we pop into a room full of unexpecting muggles. Here." She looked from left to right and pulled him into the nearest alleyway. "You can apparate with me."  
"Why are we hiding, you nutter." Ron furrowed his eyebrows, feeling his toes tingle- warm from the firewhiskey.  
"I don't know." Luna whispered. "I just never like apparating plop in the middle of the road. I guess it's from living in New York for two years." She beamed up at him positioning herself directly in front of him, her blonde hair framed by the brick building behind her. Her hair glowed from the light of the full moon despite them being tucked between two tall buildings.  
"That's beautiful." She said, nodding her head upward towards the moon."  
"Yup." He said, staring at her pouty bottom lip.  
"Here." She held out her two hands, not looking up at him innocently. He took one while he let firewhiskey guide his other hand to her waist. In the blink of an eye he had her against the brick wall and he had bent down to press his lips against her soft pastel pink ones. He could smell baby's breath flowers in her hair and lilacs on her skin and felt a tug upwards and a blurry, dizzying swirl. He kept his lips pressed against hers until his feet hit solid ground again and he stepped away noticing that the wall behind her was now cement and there was an old wooden two story house behind him instead of a brick bookstore.  
"That's a new way to apparate." She smiled up at him.  
"Guess I don't hate it that much, it seems."

 

Ron woke up with a pounding head, eyes watering as he squinted into the unforgiving morning sun. There was a cup of coffee on a light blue whimsically North African bedside table his right. The steam waved over to him as he gathered his surroundings. There were flower pots hanging from the ceiling and ivy strewn across from desktop to dresser to every post of this annoyingly girly four poster bed. The lacey pastel pink canopy did nothing to help him block the sun out. What use was this anyway. His heart hammered as he heard a light and lilting voice singing along to a radio in a room beyond this one.  
He sat up to find be had slept in his jeans, flannel and, uncomfortably, his trainers. He rubbed his head, deciding in the moment that he needed a haircut as a strand poked him, painfully in his already watery eyes.  
He stepped out of the bedroom doorway to the smell of warm and delicious food cooking. He heard the clatter of pans and plates.  
"I'm out here, Ronald!" An eerily airy voice called out to him. His throat tightened up and he considered bolting out of what, he guessed, was the front door that was in the middle of two large windows also cluttered with pots and pots of plants, one above a grey couch that seemed less squashy than anything his mother had ever owned. He decided against making a break for it after he realized how thick he'd look if it happened to be a closet.  
He stepped into the kitchen to the scene of Luna Lovegood scrambling what looked like eggs as she flicked a wand and four pieces of toasts started buttering themselves.  
"Er.." He started, unsure of what to say ,exactly. "Goodmornin' Luna." He felt his cheeks grow hot.  
"Don't be embarrassed, Ron." She turned to smile at him as, with another flick of her wand, the coffee cup that had sat beside him as he woke flew past his arm and sat itself at a place on the round turquoise breakfast table. "Nothing happened. You starting vomiting around two and I brought you here to sleep it off." She smiled, reassuringly, as the two toasts sat themselves on plates at the table beside the two hot and full cups of coffee.  
"Oh..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "It's not like, well. You know."  
"Yeah. We'd make an odd pair, Weasley." She laughed, this time keeping her eyes on the eggs as she made the pan float to each dish and portioned them each out some. "Breakfast?"  
"Always." He halfheartedly laughed, relieved beyond belief. He sat across from her, wondering why he had let himself get so stupid last night. He knew he had to have looked like a git. "These eggs taste a little weird, Luna- don't get me wrong, I really appreciate breakfast. But..." He chewed over the texture of what seemed to be a somewhat slightly undercooked egg.  
Luna laughed, seemingly unoffended. "I don't have eggs here. It's tofu." He grimaced.  
"Wha?"  
"Tofu." She chewed happily. "I don't eat eggs."  
"Well." He said looking down as the now seemingly huge mound of yellow blobs that were now completely foreign to him.  
"Oh good lord." She laughed. "We'll go out then." 

 

"So how was your night?" Harry had stopped into the joke shop with Ginny before Ron had even gotten there.  
"I'm glad you and Luna could hang out. You're both moving on from stuff." Ginny said, distractedly as she moved down an aisle past a swarm of homeschooled looking witches who were ogling at the daydream charm packs.  
"Yup. It was pretty boring." He shot quickly. Harry narrowed his eyes at Ron but if he suspected anything, he said nothing.  
"You know, I think the break is good for you and Hermione. You really need to figure out what you want, Ron." Ginny kept at it while Harry seemed to be studying Ron carefully.  
"Yep. Really great time, Gin." He cleared his throat. "Mate, you trying to etch a map of my face or what?" Harry cocked his head but kept moving alongside Ginny down the aisle.  
"No I'm serious! And I just know Rolf and Luna are made for each other but sometimes a break to just be with friends is what everyone really needs."  
"Is it?" Harry asked her half teasing but half curious.  
"Sometimes." She turned to stare at him as she brought him into a kiss.  
"This is a public shop, you lot. Get out if you're trying to give a show." Ron rolled his eyes.  
"So Ron. Where did you guys go last night?" Harry pulled away and made towards Ron. Ron busied himself behind the counter, adjusting and restacking the small bits and bobs that lay near the register.  
"Well she announced to all of you. We went to that muggle place downtown."  
"Yeah but I rang this morning and there was no answer." Ron felt his face grow hot again.  
"What are you on about, Harry? Luna would never" but she stopped when she saw the flush in Ron's cheeks. "Oh no Ron! Come on, rebounds are fine and well and all but it's supposed to be outside of your regular friend group."  
"Hey! That's unfair we all know Luna and I aren't regular mates." Ron said and tried to counter the too-quick defense with "And nothing even happened anyway."  
"Right." Harry smirked as he set skiving snackboxes on the counter. "For Dudley. He's hating Uni."  
"You really tried something, didn't you?" Ginny kept up, not taking Ron's pretense of deafness for one moment.  
"Tried something? Ginny I'm not a creep lurking in the shadows! What do you take me for."  
"A creep lurking in the shadows." She shot back flatly. "Take it back. Be kind but tell Luna you can only be friends."  
"We didn't do anything!" He raised his hands in defense. "I'm serious! She let me stay at hers because I drank too much and got sick everywhere." He said, purposefully omitting the kiss he was still sober enough to remember from the night before.  
"You swear it?" Ginny said throwing down a few galleons.  
"I swear it."  
"Good. Because Hermione spent the better of three months waiting for an owl from you." Ginny scowled. "And Luna is too nice for you." 

 

 

Luna danced around her apartment in a swingy lace dress watering all of her lovely littel herbs and greenery. She had moved through half of her record collection since she got back. One thing New York taught her was that muggles had wonderful ways of listening to music but records were her favorite. The way the needle scratched when she first placed it down reminded her of her Gran's house and taking swing lessons from her Grandfather. She bent over the couch to water a plant that was slightly out of her reach when she stepped on something soft.  
She looked down at the light brown peacoat and maroon scarf and smiled. The R in a dazzling gold knit smiled back up at her. She looked outside at the bright sun that ducked in and out of clouds that rolled westward.  
"What do you reckon, Melford?" She asked her favorite fiddlehead fern and watched its leaves rustle in a slightly-too-cool early April breeze. She checked the watch she'd been snt for her birthday months prior by Neville. It held a collection of flowers and herbs instead of number and times and she quite loved it. He had spotted it at an herbal alchemist's convention and knew he had to get it for her and she adored him for this. "Shall we ask Neville over for a cup?" Melford's leaves rustled eagerly and she nodded in agreement. 

The familiar light knocks drifted through the hallway to Luna's bedroom as she finished watering the very last of her plants. "Right-y-o, Jonathan." She smiled at the Mugwort plant that hung directly over her nightstand.  
"What a sight for sore eyes." Neville smiled as she pulled the door open to reveal his even more handsome face.  
"Wow." She gasped. "You look lovely!" She watched Neville grow crimson as he laughed and shook a hand through his windswept hair. "Hannah Abbott is one lucky woman."  
"Thanks, Lun. I've missed you dearly." He stepped in and without a moment's hesitation enveloped her in one of his staple bear hugs. "Getting on okay?"  
"Always." She said, breathing in the scent of earth and moss and pushing him back to get a good look at her dear best friend. "I've been back for weeks and we've yet to get back into patterns."  
"Oh don't think I've forgotten," He grinned and pulled out an elaborate piece of glass from his pocket. "I think I've created the perfect strain." He made two "OK" signs with both his hands and threw a baggy towards Luna.  
"My genius best friend." She beamed. 

 

The plants hung in clouds of smoke as blissful voices shot back and forth.  
"And he didn't know what tofu was? Are you serious?" Neville choked a cough back, laughing too hard.  
"To be fair I don't think he'd eat vegetables unless they were covered in something that had died previously."  
"Luna, you cannot be contemplating this." Neville looked at her incredulously. "He's rude!"  
"You like Harry." She replied.  
"Yeah, well Harry's got the sense to be polite and- well! You like Harry, too."  
"Exactly. I think Ron's not as dense as he lets on, Neville. The kiss was just wonderful."  
"You were apparating, Luna. Any chance maybe that was the feeling that dominated the kiss?"  
"Oh Neville!" She rolled her great big eyes and grabbed the bag of crisps he held so that she could grab a handful. "You out of all of us should understand not to pass judgement so quickly."  
"Luna, he's an okay guy and all but every time I've been round to drink with the guys he's always asking what Hannah's name is."  
"You can't expect him to know everyone's names. He meets hundreds of people a day at the joke shop." She threw her hands up.  
"He's met her." Neville said in a deadpan tone. "Multiple times."  
"Well..." Luna say thinking of something to say back was popping chips into her mouth. "Okay, get this," She sat upright. "What if I'm just curious?"  
"Hermione will loathe you."  
"Oh please." Luna laughed, dreamily. "She's always thought I was a bother."  
"Has not." Neville defended.  
"Just because she was in your house and nice to you does not mean she's a saint." Luna replied, matter-of-factly. "Besides, when Ron found out about your mum and dad you said he was way nicer than you'd expected."  
"Luna." Neville sighed heavily. "If you want to play with that specific brand of fire, I will not stop you. You've been through a lot lately. But please, just don't go thinking he's someone he's not. He's a fine guy, but you need a great guy." Neville had grabbed the bag of crisps again while giving her a furtive glance.  
She beamed back at him. "Nev, Hannah is a marvelous person and I'm so excited for you to have someone in your life that you deserve," and paused for a while before adding "But also I'm going to do what I will either way." and smiling. 

 

Ron stepped off the Nimbus he had purchased weeks ago, adjusting his pants and jacket and looking up and down the walk. He hadn't a clue why he was here but he had also been undoubtedly curious for the past week. He looked up to see twinkles of lights on strings and the blue lace curtains that did nothing to block the sun but looked exactly like Luna in the moonlight, dreamy and whimsical.  
"Get it together, Weasley." He urged himself "In or out but not gawking in the street." As if she had overheard him somehow, Luna stepped out onto the fire escape that Ron remembered debating whether or not it was a doorway to bolt through the first time he had been here.  
"Oh! Ron!" She beamed down, while hanging two plants on the metal bars that surrounded a small secure area to stand on. "Just head up the backstairs."  
"Thanks." He replied, actually grateful for having not remembered how he had gotten to her apartment the time before and having apparated with Luna when they left for actual real breakfast.  
"Good to see you!" He smiled up him when she opened the door and he tried to ignore the swoop that once again went off in his stomach as he noticed how much shorter he was when she stood so close.  
"Sure, Lovegood. What's up?" He said. "You said it was urgent in your owl."  
"Well," She said completely unaffected by his short tone. "I heard the last two cold nights of the season are coming in and I figured you'd might need these back." She held out his jacket and scarf and he laughed.  
"I have millions of those, Lovegood." He grabbed them anyways. "My mum makes a scarf on every cold holiday. I'll never catch a cold."  
"Well that's wonderfully prepared of her." She smiled back at him, lighting some large thick deep purple candles that set on a wooden coffee table between that gray couch and her large bookcase. Within about a million books was a tiny old fashioned TV that reminded Ron of the one his parents had in the living room of the burrow- the one that only played things in black and white.  
"Nice TV." He smiled.  
"It's for news, mainly." She said, not looking back at him. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to leave now. It seemed awfully off to be called to someones house at 7pm just for a scarf and jacket.  
"Cool." He said, feeling dumb not having something better to add. He could have kicked himself for being nervous around Looney Lovegood.  
"One might say, yes. I've seen better, though."  
"Huh?" He realized he had been trailed off into a barrage of thoughts about how thick he must sound.  
"The tv?" She stood up and surveyed him. "You seem odd today, Weasley."  
He couldn't suppress his laughter at being called odd by Luna. "Yeah." He replied. "I'm a little out of it, lately."  
"I saw Hermione the other day." He felt immediately annoyed at this. Why was she bringing up Hermione right now? Unless she had scrubbed the kiss from her mind completely and was now trying to needle him like Ginny into talking about his feelings. He could sit within himself and be miserable on his own, thank you very much.  
"Yeah?" He shot a glare her way. "Good for you."  
"She seemed pleased to see me." Luna stated, dreamily offering him some tea and he shook his head. "It was nice. Even though she always acted to frustratedly at me when we were younger."  
"Yeah she can be that way."  
"Rigid?" Luna asked and Ron appreciated Luna's sometimes blunt honestly.  
"Yeah. Rigid." He realized that might be exactly why he was here right now. Luna was fluid. Like air. No exact shape but still existing. Nothing really containing her. He appreciated the blue flowers that were braided into her hair and let himself feel a twinge of adoration for the small witch that stood before him.  
"I told Neville that I like you."  
"Sorry?" He almost coughed, taken aback.  
"When we were hanging out yesterday." She smiled and headed to her kitchen, apparently adamant to pour him some tea anyway.  
"No I mean you like me? Why would you say a thing like that?" Ron asked a little too quickly.  
"Because I do." She shrugged. "If you don't like me that's fine, but I figured if you came over tonight you probably returned the feelings."  
"What? Luna that's a mental thing to bet someone feelings on." He took the cup of floral tea she handed him.  
"He figured the same."  
"Because Neville has sense."  
Luna laughed and casually said "I'll have to tell him you said that."  
"You're telling him that I came over here?"  
"Of course. I haven't anyone else to talk to about this odd situation." She handed him a jar of sugar and he spooned some into his shallow cup not realizing it was possibly way too much. "It's not like I'm going to confide in my only girl friend since she's your sister."  
"No!" Ron spit his tea back into the mug due to both the sugar level and the thought of Ginny finding out he had come back to Luna's apartment. "She'd kill me."  
"I'm a bit out there compared to your friends, Ron. But I'm not stupid." She cocked her head to the side and seemed to stare at him or past him but she was looking somewhere deep within him, he felt. He shifted uncomfortably. "You seem alright."  
"Thanks?" He said, putting his cup down. "I put too much sugar in this."  
"I saw." She grinned, pulling her wand out of her braided hair and flicked it, music came from the living room.  
"Want to see some pictures from Siberia? I saw a Ruffled Mufflewamp there." She beamed up at him seeming very pleased with herself.  
"No." He paused, chucked out his moral compass, and leaned down close enough to smell that lilac smell that drifted off of her.  
"Oh." She said softly as he was about an inch away from her face now. "Alright." and he leaned in to continue what they had started in the alleyway a week ago.

 

"Stop it, Ron!" A high pitch laugh arose from Luna as they lay in bed, hours after they actually woke up thanks to Luna's wonderful knack for the Accio charm. They lay reading The Quibbler and The Prophet while Luna filled their coffee mugs every time they got to a level where the coffee was cold and sour. She had mastered the art of non-verbal charms and spells at the age of 17 she had once told him, as a tray of cookies came floating past his head as he sat across the couch and she draped her legs across his.  
Ron sat cross-legged reading The Daily Prophet half heartedly while breathing obnoxiously hard so as to make the tops of the pages of The Quibbler flutter as Luna's eyes scanned from left to right. SHe could always ignore these little teases until he started fake coughing to get her attention. She let out a high laugh and watched his eyes crinkle as he achieved his desired effect. He loved that making Luna laugh was something he was always good at, no matter what mood she was in. He hadn't quite realized it but he also loved that in the past four weeks since he started staying over at hers more than just once or twice he had begun to easily decipher her moods and sighs.  
"It's 10 am, I reckon." He leaned over and kissed her languidly and she placed her hand on the soft, warm spot on his neck where she could always feel his pulse as it quickened. "I have to go." He whispered in her ear and a shiver down her spine and he lightly bit her soft, pale earlobe.  
"You could always stay." She whispered back and started trailing her fingers down his abdomen.  
"I can always come back." He grabbed her hand and started kissing her neck, it was more of an ask than a statement and he listened to her breath hoping she would say she'd love to have him back again. A pang in his stomach suddenly brought to his attention how easy it had been start adoring someone. He had gone from agonizing over the missing nest of frizzy brown hair he used to wake up to, to anticipating when he would open his eyes and see rosey cheeks, soft pale pink lips and silky dirty blonde tresses softly breathing, a hand reaching towards Ron in a way that suggested that she had tried to hold him throughout the night.  
"I would love that." She came him a sweet, short kiss as he left the bed, feeling happy and secure in knowing he was wanted by the cutest, oddest person he'd ever met. 

 

 

Ron tried his hardest to type his intended message as he had owned his muggle cell phone for only a week. It was something Luna talked him into but it wasn't entirely her doing. Harry had insisted for two years Ron purchased one. Harry also spent hours on end explaining them to Mum and Dad and seemingly loving every time Arthur sent him a jumbled line of words.  
"It's quite funny." Harry turned his screen outward to show Ron a screen that read  
Arthur W (Dad Weasley)

 

9:42pm  
"It's Molly press the button arthur  
I already did. I told you not to let it  
listen to us like that. Wait for the  
beep, for Merlin's Sake isn't this  
The bloodiest darn challenging  
device I quit.

"Oh it's cute, Ron!" Ginny chimed in. "Harry tried to get them to use voice to text."  
"Last night I got a bunch of emoji ducks and a thumbs up." Harry laughed, spilling a bit of butterbeer on the counter and apologizing to Bill, profusely.  
"Guys, I have to run. Girls are meeting in twenty." Ginny stood up from the bar, waving at Bill. "Love you Harry." She bent down to kiss Harry's sun tanned face and Ron didn't grimace as usual. "You too, idiot." She smiled at her brother.  
"Yeah, yeah. See ya later, Ginny."  
"I think I ought to go." Ron said, peering down that the message that lingered on the screen. 

Looney

 

9:58pm  
Running Late!  
R  
Read 9:58pm

10:01pm  
Not a worry! Ginny's  
invited me round for  
drink! Text you when  
I've finished  
L

"Shit." Ron accidentally said aloud.  
"Well yeah, I'd always rather hang just us but we've been invited and I already said we would. So we have to."  
"I'm sorry, mate. What are you on about? I wasn't listening." Ron cleared his throat and pulled his attention back to Harry.  
"Oh. Well Dean and Seamus invited all the our year Gryffindors round to their new flat. It's in the middle of London. Plenty of great pubs, they said."  
"Sounds great." Ron said absently as his mind wandered to whether or not this night would end in Ginny's rage. 

 

"Ay!" A chorus of whoops and yelps let out as Ron pushed the pub doors open and stepped into the warm, thick air. The smell of hoppy beers wafted outward and Harry stepped next to ron, taking his light jacket off in the pub heat.  
"They're not much for subtly, are they?" Harry grinned at Ron and led the way over to the table. Ron always liked Dean and Seamus and he hadn't stopped once in the few years outside of Hogwarts halls but at the moment he was too distracted to be as excited as he normally would have been to see their grinning faces. He surveyed the table they had reserved, a big round wooden table filled with bottles and pitchers of various beers. One thing to raise his worries was muggle pubs. He loved the bitter tang of muggle beers. Butterbeer was okay and various gins and whiskeys were fine but the variations muggles put on different types of beers- well, they took them seriously, you could say.  
"Ron!" He heard a calmer voice say in an amused tone and looked up to see Neville joining them at the table, beer glass in hand. He had an expression Ron couldn't quite comprehend but there was more than one simple emotion in it.  
"Ne-heh-heville." Ron said, dumbstruck through a cough that came upon him out of sheer surprise. "What a surprise!"  
"Long time no see, mate!" He walked around the table to give Harry and Ron a side hug, telling Harry they really needed to see each other more often than this and that Dean and Seamus shouldn't exclude him on the debauchery all the time.  
He pulled Ron in for a quick and awkward side hug while saying, just quietly enough, "How many of this lot know?"  
"What?" Ron tried to play dumb, reaching for a beer.  
"Chip in for that, Weasley. We know the joke shop makes loads!" Seamus' thick accent carrying across the pub so that more than a few muggles turned their heads.  
"Merlin, Seamus. Scream it a little louder I don't think they caught ya back in Ireland." Ron's face grew hot and he threw down a galleon.  
"What's that, Weasley? Put that away in here, for Christ's sake." Dean laughed. "You don't honestly think they take those here.  
"That's what I've got!" Ron's heads flew up to his hair and he messed it up purposefully to relieve stress and to watch it improve in a carefree way in the reflection of the pub mirror.  
"Always unprepared, eh?" Dean laughed. "Same Ron."  
"I don't know." Neville cocked his head to the side. "Something seems different to me."  
Ron glared in his direction but said in a friendly tone "Not much, Neville. Not much."  
"Nah, it's the glow of a single man." Seamus raised his cup to a cheers. Dean winked at Ron.  
"Who's following Puddlemere United? Anyone seen Wood make that great save last week?" Harry threw Ron an apologetic glance and tried changing the subject.  
"I heard Grangers' out with that lot tonight." Seamus said, pouring himself a beer, larger than necessary at this rate, with is volume. The irish, Ron thought with a scowl.  
"Wait-" He couldn't stop himself from blurting out "Ginny's group?"  
"Yeah." Seamus grinned. "Havin' a bit of a girls night from what I heard. It's not even just Gryffindors. They got loads of girls 'round to celebrate Hannah's- well" Seamus shot Neville a wink. "You tell 'em."  
"Alright. Guys." Neville played with his pint nervously while he announced "I've asked Hannah to marry me."  
"Neville!" Harry stood up, mouth agape. "Neville!" He yelled sloshing his beer from excitement rather than drunkenness. "Congratulations Neville!"  
"TO NEVILLE!" Dean and Seamus hollered simultaneous and Ron beamed at Neville and joined in on the cheers.  
"This round's on me!" Harry called to the bartender. "Can we get a round of shots over here!"  
"Aye!" The bartender yelled back, a young bloke who was handsome enough but still grumpy enough to not mess with. "What liquor?"  
"Tequila!" Harry shot back, "You guys are gonna' hate this." He laughed.  
"Blimey Harry!" Neville exclaimed.  
"At least get us something tasty. I'm not tryin' ta die tonight if ya don't mind." Seamus cried.  
"Oh quiet." Harry slapped Seamus' back and turned to Dean, "Calm him down, will ya. The Irish have learned to like it all as long as it gets them drunk, I thought." Seamus shot Harry a challenging look but they both laughed, wholeheartedly as a girl in extremely tight clothing brought out a tray of shots, limes and a salt shaker.  
"Ron, you could do with a muggle girl to take your mind off things." Dean said, eyeing the woman as she walked away.  
"It's been a while since I stepped foot in a straight club but I'd do it for my mate." Seamus laughed.  
"Oy." Neville called the attention back to his side of the table. "I was wondering if you all wanted to be my groomsmen." He asked, face reddening. "I know we're all too busy to see much of each other but I just thought, well-"  
"Neville!" Dean cut him off before he talked himself into a hole. "I would have been offended if you didn't."  
"Mate, I'da brought leprechaun gold as a gift if I wasn't included." Seamus shot, rubbing Neville's shoulder affectionately.  
"Of course, mate!" Harry said.  
"We'll be there with ties on-" Ron agreed, "If that's what you want."  
"Oh I don't bloody know a thing about weddings." Neville seemed to breathe a lot easier now that he had asked the, what he had come to ask. "I just need you lot for support."  
"Of course, Nev." Harry smiled.  
"So about those muggle women, though." Dean raised an eyebrow at Seamus and they both turned to Ron. 

 

 

Neville seemed to be burrowing into Ron's back with his vision as Ron walked, coerced, into the loud, dark and sweaty nightclub. Women in deep cut dresses and hugged every hip seemed to populate every corner of this place. Ron was sweating, trying to not act suspicious in front of Seamus, Dean and Harry while also keeping Neville at bay. He wanted no word of this getting anywhere near Luna and was already having a hard enough time fretting over whether Luna and Hermione were having drinks together in a quiet corner comparing his sex moves.  
They're probably having a riot laughing over my pale thighs, Ron though. Men just shouldn't have thighs, he swore it. Women- sure, they got these beautiful long silky limbs while men had to bare these pale odd things that bore patchy hair until you get to the calf where is actually looks decent.  
His stomach turned and he tried to shake away the thought of them laughing at his naked body together. He looked from girl to girl until he spotted one that looked nothing like either of them, in case Neville was counting, and walked up to her as his friends clapped his back.  
"Oy." He shouted in her ear. Wrong move. She turned around and made a disgusted face, looking him from toe to head in a way that made him feel distinctly small and horrible looking.  
"That's it." He said, sauntering back to his friends. "I'm done for. I'm repulsive."  
"Oh shut up." Dean laughed. "You just haven't said the right thing. What I always do is talk softly, so they have to lean in real close, and compliment something about them."  
"This is bloody horrible." Ron replied. Harry snorted and his drink came up through his nose, he winced and Ron took solace in the fact that, for one second, someone was in more pain than he was.  
"Girls." Harry choked.  
"We gathered." Seamus rolled his eyes and mouthed "Heteros" to Neville who looked confused as to why he was the receiver of this assumed insult.  
"No!" Harry coughed, trying to stabilize himself. "THE GIRLS." He pointed over to a patch in the corner and Ron's eyes followed. To his horror he picked out the glimmer of a very bright red head of hair surrounded by various girls including the brown locks of one Hermione Granger and the silky blonde of a very obvious Luna Lovegood.  
Fuck it all to bits.  
His eyes shot to Neville's immediately and Neville understood.  
"Fancy a drink?" Neville shouted.  
"Yup." Ron said without hesitation.  
"We just got you-"  
"I hate it." Neville cut Dean off before he could even finish his sentence, pushing past a few people, Ron's arm in hand. Ron could clearly hear Dean yelling "Don't gotta' be a prat about it, Longbottom!" But Neville paid no attention as he bee lined to the bar.  
"How many of this lot know?" Neville rounded back to the first thing he asked Ron on sight.  
"You."  
"That's bloody all?" Neville said and Ron could see traces of complimented smirk in his worried eyes.  
"Ginny?" He asked.  
"She's skin me alive."  
"Right." Neville turned his back to the bar to survey the war zone. Harry had waved Ginny over and she gasped in delight, pushing her way through bounding bodies and skimpily clad women. He saw Hermione who looked flushed and healthy and... unfortunately happy, he found himself thinking. He locked eyes with Luna as Hermione swayed out of his direct line of vision. She had seen him staring Hermione down and gave, what appeared to be, an empathetic smile. He was dead. He was simply dead. Hannah Abbott waved to her fiance and Neville did a stupid noise back even though, Ron though, the git couldn't be heard over the noise and across the entire room.  
Ron did a double take when he saw, at the back of the group in a lively chat with Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell he saw Pansy Parkinson.  
"Squid out of water in this situation." He murmured.  
"What?" Neville yelled back over the music.  
"Nothing."  
"I guess we just see what happens, mate." Neville said to him.  
"That's it?"  
"Yeah, I'd say so."  
"Oh Neville." Ron sighed.  
"I know."  
"You're awful." Ron hung his head and patted Neville's back as they approached the group of boys and Ginny.  
"Ron! You look pale!" Ginny pointed out.  
"Yeah I'm usually quite pale, Gin." He rolled his eyes.  
"Come say hi, guys!" She called.

 

Ron was between a rock and a hard place, as Harry had said before to Ron's amusement. No flying allowed.  
"Hey." Hermione said quietly, coming up beside him. "How are things?"  
"As well as usual." He replied. "You look well."  
"It's been nice, Ron." She smiled. "I've been able to focus on work and friends."  
"Wonderful." He replied. "Hey." He turned towards her. "I'm really sorry I made it so awful this past year. I could have been better. I got really comfortable with you always reassuring me."  
"Ronald Weasley apologizing? What's happened?" He turned her face to smile at him and his breath caught. He missed those deep brown eyes- he had grown up with those deep brown eyes. He had a million memories of laughter with this person. "It's alright, Ron. We all got a little comfortable."  
"No I really should have been more supportive." He said quietly enough that she had to lean in. He scanned the room to find Luna and Neville deep in conversation.  
"So Pansy Parkinson?" He asked and found himself laughing alongside Hermione.  
"She's different now." She sighed, "We all are."  
"I mean, a little different- but that much?" He narrowed his eyes at her as if to tell her he doubted Parkinson was any less of a nightmare than she had always been.  
"She and Blaise Zabini eloped in Russia last year. She showed us pictures- it was beautiful."  
"Blaise?! I thought she and Draco-" He watched her as the name left her mouth and she flushed.  
"They never dated." She laughed.  
"Looked like dating to me."  
"Nope." She started whistling along to the too-loud song.  
"So," Ron said, growing suspicious. "Who invited her?"  
"Oh." She said, looking upward, outward, leftward- wherever his eyes weren't. "Ginny thought it was a good idea."  
"Ginny? My sister Ginny?"  
"Yep. That Ginny. Anyway Ron, is there anything new with you?"  
"Depends. How new are we talking?"  
"You know what I mean."  
"Why did Ginny think it was a good idea to invite Pansy?" Ron started again.  
"Okay, I work with her and some other Hogwarts Alumni. I wanted to create a more cohesive work environment at the ministry." SHe took a long breath.  
"Who else?"  
"Who else what, Ron?"  
"Who else works there?" He spat. He was breathing hard now and clenching his fists. His heart was pounding.  
"Just a couple Slytherins."  
"You wouldn't be avoiding it if it meant nothing, 'Mione." He said too loudly and Ginny looked away from Harry.  
"What's up, guys?" She scooted closer.  
"Ron was just wondering why we invited Pansy." Hermione turned her head towards Ginny as Ginny's eyes widened.  
"Oh Ron." She sighed. "Ron, I just wanted Hermione to feel free to invite her work friends. We're all bigger than house colors now."  
"You guys are all bullshit if you think I can't tell what's really happening." He stopped leaning against the railing that was supporting he, Ginny, Harry and Hermione.  
"Ron, it's not that bad." Hermione started to rise as well. Luna and Neville peered over the patch of their friends to see what the ruckus was.  
"It's not, eh?" He asked, coldly. "What's not that bad, Hermione. If it's not so bad why can't you say it?"  
"You're assuming-"  
"What am I assuming? You can't say Malfoy's name without getting red in the fucking face so what am I so stupid for assuming?" He hadn't realized he had started yelling until Harry pulled his arm, lightly.  
"No, screw you. All of you." Ron hissed at Harry. "Don't tell me who not to see while you know Hermione's seeing Malfoy." Harry let go of Ron's arm and turned on Hermione and Ginny.  
"What?" He asked, seemingly dumbfounded.  
"Ron!" Ginny looked heated. "There's no need to cause a scene!"  
"Oh piss off, Ginevra. You filthy hypocrite." He turned, meeting Luna's eye. "Oy." She stared back, a little shocked. "I'm leaving. You know where to find me if you decide to ditch this filthy lot." He turned to glare at his friends. "It's been wonderful, Seamus and Dean. Neville," He turned to face Neville in all of his nervousness at what had transpired. "The whole lot can know, I honestly don't care."  
And on that, he turned and left. 

 

He didn't get a text from Luna until 3am and it was sloppy and short. She said Neville was taking her home and that he could come over if he wanted but he was rather content to seeth by himself in his dull flat and eat leftover curry. His phone pinged over and over again from each of his friends apologizing and reassuring him they had no idea. Harry called insistently until the same time that Luna texted and then, Ron assumed, he went to sleep.  
Ron walked into his bedroom and looked, disgustedly, at the lumpy knitted blanket that always sat, folded, at the end of his bed. It was maroon and gold. It was a housewarming gift from Hermione.  
He watched it drift as he chucked it out his window until it landed atop a blue muggle car. "Good fucking riddance." He spat and burrowed himself deep in his bed. 

 

Ron spent the following three days holed up in his flat watching muggle TV and eating his rage away. George had left several violent voice messages and sent three hawks to deliver howlers but he couldn't have cared less. On more than one occasion Harry had rang his doorbell and Ron let it ring until he saw Harry's black hair crossing the street, only ducking when Harry turned to look at Ron's window.  
It wasn't until tuesday that Ron realized that if he kept on like this he'd no longer be awkward and gangly but more built like Hagrid, minus the bone structure. He braced himself for the outdoors only to be pleasantly greeted with sunshine and bird song. 

He knocked on the blue door three times and thought to himself that if he counted to thirty and there was no answer it meant that he would never be forgiven for causing such a scene.  
"Ron." Ron was shocked to see a mop of dirty blonde hair and Neville's no longer round face peering back at him.  
"Oh. I. Uh. Yeah. Er." He just kept stopping and starting and he could have very well slapped himself.  
"Come in." Neville said, swinging the doorway open. "I was just leaving."  
"Oh feel free to stay, Neville." Ron said, awkwardly, realizing he had just invited someone to stay in a house that wasn't his.  
"It's alright, mate." Neville laughed, kindly, and grabbed his scarf. "I'm sure she'll be just a moment." And stepped out onto the stairs leading up to Luna's flat, waved goodbye, and pulled the door shut. 

Ron fiddled with Luna's trinkets for three minutes. He found himself, for the third time in his life, contemplating whether or not he should flee Luna's apartment or not. He heard a rustle and stood up, straightening his jacket. Luna entered the room, a towel atop her head and her bright blue eyes ogling him without a hint of surprise.  
"Ronald." She smiled warmly.  
"Oy." He replied quietly. "Sorry I was a git in front of everyone." She laughed to his dismay and replied  
"That's probably an apology best saved for Hermione."  
"Please don't-" he started but she gave him a firm look that told him not to carry on.  
""Ron, this is okay. What we're doing. As long as I'm not hurting you and you aren't hurting me." She smiled faintly. "It's not like I wasn't aware that there was an expiration date." She said plainly and his heart sank.  
"That's not what I had in mind."  
"Ron, our star charts tell us we'd make a wonderful pair but I've always known that you need a more grounded life partner."  
"Luna," He started pleadingly. "Luna, I've spent my entire life being compared to other people and my entire relationship comparing myself to someone else. Please, Luna. For once in my life let me be happy just as it is."  
Luna's big blue eyes settled on Ron's and she walked over to him with more decisiveness and priority than he had ever seen her harbor.  
"I was not comparing you to anyone." She said, grabbing his face in her hands and he felt his eyes grow hot. He didn't want her to be telling him this was another relationship he was going to fail before giving it a shot. He didn't want her to be telling him this was not a relationship from the beginning.  
"I like you, Luna." He said and she silenced him with a warm and comforting kiss.  
"I like you too." She pulled away to stare into his eyes.  
"I hate that Trelawney star shit." He said and she burst out laughing.  
"I've come to quite rely on star charts to map my relationships."  
"God, Looney. Just make a choice the normal way for once." He put her small pixie-esque face between his large hands and watched her eyes lessen with laughter.  
"I've never nor will I ever do so in my life." She stated, stubbornly.  
"Oh piss off." He grabbed her butt and lifted her onto him. She spun her legs around him, peeling her shirt off to reveal a red lace bra. "Nevermind." He smirked. "Don't piss off, for Merlin's sake, Do not piss off anywhere. Stay right here." He grunted as he removed his shirt, still balancing his strength between holding her although he legs squeezed tightly around him.  
"It's my flat, Weasley." She hopped down, pulling the towel off of her mostly dry wavy hair. She slid out of the long flowy skirt that adorned his hips to reveal red lacy underwear to match.  
"Oh Merlin." He smirked and sat himself on the grey couch surrounded by greenery and pulled her down onto him.


	2. Earth&Air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We find out some of the missing pieces. Hermione Granger, slightly lost and a little confused, still recovering from a break up with her first love, throws herself into her work- dedicated to making a name for herself in the Ministry.  
> One late night at the office leads to an extremely odd friendship. Hermione Granger having a fun night out with Draco Malfoy?  
> Apparently not entirely impossible.

Hermione stared at the hands on the clock above her boss's door. She was transfixed and mesmerized as it ticked and tocked. She jumped, realizing she was standing, idly, with project reports still in her hands. She bent down and slid the parchment contained within an envelope underneath the mahogany door.  
She stood straight, stretched, and checked the clock once more. 12:32 am. She sauntered to the break room where a pot of warm, never burnt coffee was drip dropping in the most welcoming way. She poured herself a hot cup and watched the steam curl into the air, wishing she was home curled up with Crookshanks.  
"Pulling an all nighter?" Hermione jumped, sloshing hot coffee down her front as a cool voice startled her from behind.  
"Christ." She turned around to see Malfoy, smirking condescendingly.  
"Looking a bit ruff, Granger." He brought out his wand and mumbled "Tergeo."  
"Thanks, Malfoy." Hermione said sarcastically and poured herself a second cup.  
"Careful, mudblood or your teeth with be as tainted as your ancestry."  
"Wow, Malfoy." Hermione turned, calmly, looking him directly in his grey eyes. "It's almost like one of us never really grew up you know?"  
"Well one of us definitely never really figured out how to dress like it. That's for sure." Draco looked her up and down and pushed past her to pour himself a cup of boiling water and opening a packet of earl grey tea.  
"Did you need something? Is there a reason why you're here?" Hermione moved away from him, exhausted and annoyed.  
"Same as you." He said without turning to fully address her. "I simply can't enjoy my friday night when I've got a full report due on Monday."  
"Who knew you cared so much." She said casually.  
"Just because we didn't all wear our arms out trying to be the first mudblood to know the answer to every question in school doesn't mean we don't care about doing well." He turned, leaning cooly on the counter where Hermione had stood just a moment before.  
"How's Weasley?" Draco smirked. "Don't see much of him around here. Didn't dare try to live up to his old man's delusional reputation?"  
Hermione felt heat build on the back of her neck and decided to change the subject immediately. "You don't work on this floor."  
"You pay attention." He winked.  
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I would have seen you, Malfoy. It's hard to miss your soulless gaze and dead-behind-the-eyes smile." She immediately felt horrible. She had spent ten minutes bickering back and forth with Draco Malfoy and he was getting exactly what he wanted out of this interaction. Hermione was saying rude things when she could easily steer out of his way.  
"Ah." He smiled wider. "So. You really do pay attention."  
Hermione gave him a half hearted glare and left the break room. She felt stupid. She was wasting her valuable time on Draco Malfoy when the ministry had been kind enough to grant her three months of remote work in order to get away from the city. She had deadlines and reports and piles of cases to work on and here she was giving into old bits that not even Ron would sink low enough to these days. Her heart sunk at the thought of Ron. If she went home and walked five blocks to his flat would she see his bedroom light on? Would he be playing games on his new console Harry had bought him. She missed seeing Harry, too. She hated that this break was putting them all back in old habits. She remembered, grudgingly, the way Harry would often get lost chasing Ron during their rows in school and forget that Hermione, too, was his best friend.  
She shook the feelings off and started packing up her bag. If she stayed here any longer she'd be subjecting herself to memories that hurt and frustrations replaying her stupid spat with Malfoy. -Though a small part of her wished she could just apparate in front of Ron's door and rant about Malfoy while he cheered her for her insults and reassured her that Malfoy was a git.  
"Hey." The cold voice, once again, caused her to jump as it had suddenly come from directly behind her with no warning such as footsteps or signs of approach.  
"Malfoy!" She yelped. "Wear a bell or something."  
She turned around, quickly wiping away the small mist that had gathered in her eyes and felt a growing embarrassment as Malfoy looked awkwardly toward the ceiling, pretending not to see that she had been crying.  
"I was just going to say that I have actually been working upstairs for a few hours. I was getting ready to head out and if we leave soon we could get a drink before the pubs close up."  
"You're inviting me for a round?" She responded suspiciously.  
"Yeah, mudblood. I'm trying to present a more welcoming appearance. Really get my hands dirty with diversity." He smirked. "Don't make me say no pun intended."  
"No I think I'm good." She said, turning to finish grabbing her stuff.  
"Listen," Malfoy continued. "If I'm being honest there were a lot of rumors going around when you left for three months. I've gone through really hard times before." Hermione turned to face him as he secured his scarf and she swung her bag over her head, ready to respectfully decline once more but something in his face stopped her. "I'm honestly just trying to extend a hand of support here."  
She sighed but he went on. "It's not like we have to be best friends or anything-" She snorted and he shot her a glare, "I just think you work really hard and deserve a break, Granger."  
"Is that..." She side eyed him somewhat teasingly. "Is that empathy? Malfoy, am I sensing empathy here?"  
"I'll take it back immediately if word gets out." He said, quickly. She checked her watch. She had nowhere to be tomorrow except getting brunch with Ginny, Alicia and Katie, and knowing them they'd show up hungover and thirty minutes late smelling of sweat after a long morning of Quidditch practice. She shrugged.  
"It can't hurt I guess."  
"That's the spirit." Draco smirked. "Let that hair down."

 

The Angry Serpent was dark but not dingy. Deep green orbs hung every few feet giving the place a hauntingly handsome appeal. Two fireplaces sat at each end of the bar surrounded by deep velvety black couches and armchairs to which Hermione was very much drawn to, yet she and Draco sat at the bar. It was much more comforting to sit with someone you do not trust in a straight backed position. Cozy couches were reserved for people you could relax in front of.  
"That deserves two shots." Draco rubbed his temples then held up two fingers to the sour looking female bartender and she nodded in response. "On me."  
"Malfoy- it's okay. I probably shouldn't drink much more anyway."  
"Granger, calm down. It's friday. Just let yourself have fun."  
"That's not one of my strong suits." She smiled a small self-reflective smile.  
"Oh really? No, please. Tell me more, I could have never read that off of you." Draco deadpanned.  
"Hey," She retorted, smiling a bit bigger. "You don't really seem the type to really let loose, either."  
"Granger, when, even once, have you ever witnessed me relaxed?"  
"Never." She said, feeling proud to prove her point.  
"Exactly." He leaned in, "The secret it that I present myself very differently to whoever I'm near." She averted her eyes, feeling suddeny awkward that he was so close to her.  
"And?"  
"And that means that you and your obnoxious, idiotic Gryffindor friends were unabashed about breaking the rules." He pushed one of the shots that the bartender just set in front of them to her and clinked his glass upon hers before throwing it back without a hint of a wince or grimace. "Whereas my friends and I were much sneakier."  
She threw her head back, the shot burning her throat the whole way down but keeping a steely expression so as to prove she could outdo Draco.  
"Well done, mudblood."  
"Could you stop with the mudblood? Seriously. It's just old at this point."  
"What would you rather I call you? Granger gets quite boring."  
"Granger."  
"Fine, Granger." He smiled at her but faced forward and summoned two more shots  
"-No, Draco, it's really-"  
"Oh shut up, Granger." He laughed. "These are for me."

 

"You look awful." Ginny laughed as she came from behind Hermione who was sitting by herself at a table for four on the patio of a nice French bistro in downtown London.  
"I feel awful." Hermione replied, not pulling her head from her hands.  
"What got into you?" Alicia said, swinging her backpack down and plopping into a seat between Katie and Ginny.  
"Lots and lots of firewhiskey." Hermione groaned.  
"Granger!" Spinnet reached to clap Hermione's back and Hermione felt a small heave in her throat and held her hand in the air.  
"Oh Granger-" Alicia's tone went from congratulatory to concerned in less than a second. "You sure you should be here, mate?"  
"It's good it's good." Hermione half whispered, slugging down her glass of water and closing her eyes, counting to ten until she felt the water pass into her stomach where it was safe- for now.  
"Who did you go out with? Harry was out with Ron last night." Ginny said, grabbing a piece of Baguette from the basket in the center of the table and dipping it in the butter like a chip in salsa. "Practice makes me so hungry." She said unapologetically.  
"How does Harry find that sexy?" Katie laughed but looked at Ginny disgustedly.  
"I don't act like this in front of him." Ginny smiled, mouth open, exposing half chewed bread.  
"Ginny!" Hermione yelped grabbing her stomach.  
"Maybe you should go home, Hermione." Alicia worried out loud.  
"I want crepes so badly." Hermione admitted. Ginny laughed, again prodding her about who she was out with.  
"A coworker," Hermione said deciding it wasn't totally a lie. Draco worked in the same building as her.  
"Oh! That cute McKinney boy?" Katie asked, not hiding her excitement at the prospect of Hermione entering the dating field.  
"Not even close." She sighed.  
"Who?" Ginny asked again, not in a prodding way but more just curious.  
"A girl that just started." Hermione was now in full-fledge-lie territory. "I felt bad for her. She seemed stressed."  
"No need to drink your liver into extinction just to gain a new friend, Hermione." Ginny laughed, shoving two menus into the faces of Katie and Alicia.  
"Easier said than done, mate." Katie said, not taking her eyes off of the pages of rich and fatty french foods, "Drinking is the only way I make any friends."  
"Yeah well you're a harlot and can handle a hard life." Alicia nudged her and Katie started as if to object but then said, "Yeah- nevermind. You're completely correct."  
"How was Ron last night?" Hermione asked. She watched Alicia and Katie exchange glances. "Oh come on, guys. I can still care."  
"He was fine, actually." Ginny said in a botherless tone. "He and Luna stayed out past any of us. He probably spent the night making fun of her while she took no notice."  
Hermione felt a twinge of discomfort and was thankful Ginny wasn't looking at her.  
"I'm sure he hated it." Alicia interjected and Hermione realized she had witnessed Hermione's eyes shoot downward.  
Embarrassed, Hermione said "Nah' he and Luna always have a good laugh together." and smiled her most reassuring smile.  
"Oh." Ginny said, taking notice of the energy change at the table, "No, trust me. There were no sexy vibes. Luna doesn't own and is not aware of sexy vibes."  
"Ginny!" Hermione laughed and it came off rather forced and awkward "I don't care. I'm not worried. He always thought she was a laugh even if he calls her mental all the time." 

 

Hermione flopped down on her bed, jerking Crookshanks from a deep and enveloping nap. He shook himself, getting up, gave her a disapproving glance and leapt off her bed.  
"Fine!" She called out to him. "But you'll feel differently about me come dinner time." She rubbed her happy and content stomach. She was relieved that piles of crepes took care of what had been a cavernous disaster that morning.  
Almost without realizing what she was doing she pulled her laptop to her and opened it up to an open facebook page. She had passed out last night looking at Ron's profile. No new photos uploaded. She sighed in relief. He probably wasn't having a much better time than her. -Not that she wished him a hard time, that is, she reassured herself. She just didn't want to be worrying about him while he was out having a wonderful time.  
She clicked the home page, completely missing the thumbnail photo of one Red haired boy grinning foolishly over the shoulder of a short dirty blonde witch who seemed flushed from firewhiskey. Her eyes on the camera, focusing to snap the picture, while his eyes seemed glue to her. 

 

 

"Got a moment, Granger?" A fist wrapped on the corner of her cubicle to get her attention and she looked up into the silver eyes and icy blonde hair of Draco Malfoy.  
"What are you doing down here?" She looked around to see if any of her cubicle neighbors had noticed his presence. A stuffy looking wizard that sat across the aisle from her was glaring at him for disturbing him while he organized his files and folders.  
"Need a minute. " He said, shortly, looking from cubicle to cubicle as if mentally taking notes on the shabbiness of the level four offices. "I wanted you to come up to level two with me."  
"What for?" She said, getting warm. She didn't exactly want to bump into Harry while trailing Draco Malfoy.  
"Merlin's beard, Granger." Draco shot her an impatient look. "I'll tell you in the lift." 

Hermione had been to the Auror's office on level two before she had left for Bulgaria for the dreary end of the winter. She had started working on a project combining the department of Magical Law Enforcement and the department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures in the hopes to put in effect some laws protecting magical creatures of all sorts- but the initiative hadn't gotten enough votes to take off. -Not for lack of trying, Harry took the project under his wing unlike S.P.E.W. and actually tried to get the backing for it. The magical community just wasn't ready to hear that creatures needed protection from their Wizarding neighbors.  
She racked her brain trying to remember if Harry was doing in-office training or field-training today as Draco pressed the button on the lift and a voice said "Department of Magical Law Enforcement."  
"Pansy could use your help on a project she's currently working on for Arthur." The words didn't quite string together in her head and it took her a moment to remember that Arthur had mentioned last summer that he was going to go out on a limb and hire Pansy Parkinson to be his Head Officer in the Department of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts.  
"What?" She was confused. "What do I have to do with this?" she asked, still racking her brain for what exactly is was that Parkinson did.  
"I feel right sorry for the girl, actually." Arthur had said to Molly's protests. "She was raised with bad influences- of course she's going to have a bad record. But she never took the mark, she never got in that deep."  
"She's racist." Hermione protested, quietly, from the end of the dinner table and Ron nodded in agreement.  
"Downright horrible to look at, too." Ron added.  
"Oh Ronald. That's no way to talk about people." Molly snapped. "Abusing someone's appearance is just a sign that you have nothing to go off about them besides things they can't change."  
"SHe can change it." Ginny whispered, quietly to Hermione. "Muggle doctors can cut you up and make you look ten fold better these days." Harry had snorted, clapping his hand to his mouth and pretending it was a cough while Molly shot Ginny a glare.  
"Say what you will-" Arthur continued, "But I have a gut feeling about her. She's not all bad." 

"Hello.." Malfoy's hand waved in front of Hermione's face.  
"Sorry," She said, realizing they had arrived at his department. She saw him spot Pansy Parkinson's short black bob. He strode, gracefully, over to where Parkinson was bent over a map of the greater London area.  
"Oh." She looked up and glanced from Hermione to Malfoy. "So they've been leaving them all throughout these underground passages."  
"Hermione." Draco said, moving aside to let Hermione stand between the both of them, awkwardly.  
"That's the London Underground." She said, failing to hold back a laugh. "You couldn't have asked anyone else about this?"  
Draco kicked the side of her foot and said "Be helpful, Granger."  
"Sorry," She cleared her throat but couldn't hold herself back. "Wait- are you telling me nobody in the Department for the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts is knowledgeable on muggle transportation?"  
"Helpful, Granger." Draco narrowed his eyes at her and she saw Pany's cheeks flush.  
"I'm pureblood." She said, coldly. "As is my boss, believe it or not."  
"Okay." Hermione took a deep breathe gathering patience. "Well. For starters, that's the London underground. So what's going on?"  
"Well, Granger," Pansy sneered. "We don't have much to go off but people are leaving cursed objects all around these areas."  
"Like what?"  
"She's getting there." Draco sighed, once again very impatient.  
"Just bits of rubbish. Old wallets, watches. Sometimes one trainer but never two."  
"What's the curse?" Hermione asked, now more interested.  
"Well at first we weren't even aware that these things were cursed but look that these three cases." Pansy handed a manilla folder to Hermione with three muggles' medical records in it.  
"The person who went to pick up an old watch was a beggar. He immediately when into violent convulsions. He was taken to this place called the "Hospital-"  
"Yep. Aware of what a Hospital is." Granger forgot to hold back the sarcasm in her voice and quickly cleared her throat and added in a sweet tone "My parents are in the medical field."  
Pansy rolled her eyes but carried on. "They rushed him to The Hospital and diagnosed him as Epileptic?" Pansy said, without certainty and watched for a snigger from Hermione that never came- she was simply interested now. "Nobody paid any attention to the watch. The woman, Meryl Hersch, attempted to pick up the same watch 45 minutes later. The same Hospital admitted her and this time the Police-" Hermione watched Pansy strain to memorize the names of simple muggle things and appreciated, for the first time, that Pansy was a generally hard working person. "The police were pointed to the watch, and contained it. None of them were affected since it was grabbed with a metal pincher thing and secured in a bag."  
"Odd," Hermione said, sifting through the reports. "Who's this third person, then?"  
"Well we tracked down the muggle who reportedly own the watch- his initials were engraved on the underside. He went missing four months ago."  
"Well what exactly did you need me for?" Hermione asked out of curiosity, seeing that Pansy was fully well and capable of working things out for herself.  
"Well that's just it. I need a partner who was muggle raised. I don't know how to ask Doctors about Meryl Hersch or how to get in contact with WIlliam Melburn, the first watch victim, without putting the statute of secrecy at risk." Pansy said in a completely earnest voice.  
"Oh." Hermione put the folder down. "I'm not in this department." She smiled, sympathetically wiping her hands on her pants.  
"We know." Draco said, dryly. "We were thinking, if you wouldn't mind, taking it up with Arthur to see if you could get transferred."  
"Oh." Hermione's eyes widened. "Oh, no, guys. I really have important cases going on at the moment. There's a lot of rift in the magical community between-"  
"Granger." Draco sighed, exasperatedly. "It would be temporary, if you want."  
"I don't think my boss would-"  
"If you agree to this there's not much your boss can do to say no." Pansy interjected. "Mr. Weasley has more authority in this matter. If he requests you specifically, your boss can't place any blame on you."  
Hermione thought about this. A change of scenery would be nice. She had already become invigorated in the same way she used to in school while working out how to get out of the many situations Hermione often found herself and her friends in.  
"Worst case, it's temporary." Pansy seemed to plead. "Best case, you start building yourself that Minister of Magic career by making real change."  
"Can I think about it?" Hermione asked. Draco and Pansy exchanged looks.  
"Make it quick, Granger." Draco appeared bored. "We may not love muggles but the longer you take the more are going to suffer." 

 

Draco found himself sitting in his office staring out at the back of an unmistakable frizzy head of hair. He was glad that Hermione had signed on to partner with Pansy. He was certain that without a mudblood in the mix, Pansy would have failed her first real assignment. Pansy had worked so hard to gain Arthur's trust. Draco smirked. Pansy presented herself so coldly to the world yet she craved validation in the most pathetic way. 

 

"Wait," Hermione had said in a whispered tone to Draco. "I thought I would be working with both of you."  
"What?" He laughed. "I'm working as the liaison to the Wizengamot. You knew that."  
"Why were you-"  
"I was looking out for a friend, Granger." he smirked.  
"Unbelievable." She scoffed. "Parkinson and I. Alone."  
"Oh no need to pine over me in my absence, Granger." He ruffled her frizzy brown and and smirked when he saw color rise in her cheeks. "I'll be right over there, if you need to bask in my presence." He put his finger under her chin in an attempt of mockery but her cheeks blazed and he immediately looked away, embarrassed. "See ya later, mudblood." He shot and turned into his office, closing the glass door. 

 

Draco didn't blame Pansy for this. When they had dated in school most of their bond was over lack of fatherly love. But some people grew out of it and others, well. He spent a lot of his weekdays watching Pansy knock on Arthur Weasley's office door to ask him millions of questions in the hopes that she will make not a single mistake.  
Draco knew what this opportunity meant to Pansy who had spent her entire childhood under the impression that her cold and absent mother was entirely correct in believing that pureblood wizard lineage was the only thing that mattered. Once the dark lord was defeated and the wider wizarding world had shunned all old death-eaters second chances were hard to come by.  
Draco hurt, watching one of his oldest friends scrape to make ends meet. The two years that separated them from school kid days were spent checking in on her in a dingy flat where she took solace in and drank firewhiskey to go to sleep at night and in order to gain the nerve to work.  
There was a small part of him that thought that they would have ended up together if he hadn't seen her so low, but the bigger part of him knew that it was never going to happen. They were too much alike and would quickly fall into the patterns and mistakes of their parents. He was happy for her when Arthur Weasley accepted her resume and took her in. Draco may not like the Weasleys' but he had to at least respect Arthur for never changing his stance. If there was one thing Arthur was, it was reliable. Which is what Pansy needed. 

"Need lunch?" Pansy's head popped in unexpectedly, startling Draco. She looked out towards the outer offices. "Whatchya lookin' at?"  
"Nothing." He said, "Got distracted."  
"Grangers' working through lunch." Pansy rolled her eyes. "I need a break."  
"Then take one." He fixed his eyes back on the stacks of parchment laid in front of him. "I'm not slotted for a break until noon."  
"Ugh." Pansy turned, reluctantly, out of the room and trudged out of sight, robes and purse in hand.  
Against better judgement, Draco waited until he knew for a fact Pansy had departed down the lift to exit his office. He walked past rows of cubicles, nodding towards the head auror, Magnus Fletcher, and slid beside Hermione, leaning on the table next to the list of London Underground stops, highlighting areas where cursed items had been left.  
"Honestly." She sighed, not lifting her head to meet his gaze. "It's a talent of yours to creep up like that."  
"How's it coming?" He said, lazily, watching her eyebrows furrow as she worked. He traced his eyes along the unkept wildness of her hair.  
"Frustrating. But solvable." She muttered, putting a star next to a hospital name and writing down "RA Taryn Rivovsky"  
"Fancy a drink after work?" He kept his eyes on the clock that hung above his office. "A work thing. Tonight around 9."  
"What?" She parted her attention from the paper and stared at him, apparently studying his expression. He softened it, consciously.  
"You heard me, Granger. Unless all that hair deters your ability to decipher common English words."  
"I know what you said, Malfoy. We don't work in the same department. Why would we have a work outing?"  
"Granger," He laughed. "Must you always make everything so difficult. We need inter departmental cooperation. My success is your success." He held a hand up to gesture to the corny statement layered on top of an image of a cartoon Kneazle and Flobberworm, appearing to lean together, happily.  
Granger narrowed her eyes and looked from the Poster, to Draco, suspiciously. 

 

Hermione hiked the black tights up cursing as she tripped, the heel of her shoe getting stuck in the crack of the cement.  
“Ya’ alright there, miss?” A gentle looking old wizard who stood outside smoking a long pipe held a hand out for her.  
“I’m fine, thanks.” She smiled but allowed him to keep her stable as she yanked her heel out of the crack.  
“Them bloody things are dangerous. I seen many a disaster due to stilt walkers.” He smiled. She doubled her pace so that he couldn’t witness her frustration and embarrassment. She had no clue what the bloody hell she was doing. She heard a double ding in her purse and grabbed her phone to see Ginny checking whether or not Hermione wanted to join her and the girls in a night out.  
“I’ll bloody well be there if this keeps on the way it’s gone.” She muttered to herself.  
“If you keep talking to yourself I’m going to have to pretend I don’t know you, Granger.” A drawl came from down the sidewalk a way. Hermione spotted Draco Malfoy exuding a cloud of smoke, his silhouette tall and lean in the light of the lamp that hung outside of the dingy pub.  
“Where’s Parkinson?” Hermione said, rather happy to not address the fact that finding this address had been a hassle.  
“She cancelled on us.” Draco smirked. Hermione stopped dead in her tracks and stared at him, incredulously.  
“Not again.”  
“What?” He said. There was a hint of laughter in his voice and she could see that he was half smiling as took a deep drag of a long deep purple stick thing.  
“What’s that?” She pointed.  
“It’s a mixture of magical herbs charmed to make one relax.” He held it out to her. “Care to loosen up?”  
“No thanks.” She eyes him up. “Was Pansy ever even coming?”  
“She thought about it.” He said, amused. “But our animal instincts take over when presented with a lustful opportunity.”  
“And that means?” She furrowed her eyebrows, not exactly understanding what he was going on about.  
“Blaise Zabini came calling the way any worthy suitor does.” He smirked. “He sent her a picture of… well.” Hermione shifted her weight around uncomfortably, looking away from Draco while he laughed, “He tempted her with something Pansy isn’t known to be able to resist.”  
“You’re foul.”  
“Lighten up, mud-” He cleared his throat. “Granger, I mean.”  
“Well if a whole third of our party made plans elsewhere I still have time to join my friends.” She said, pulling her phone out of her bag, intending to text Ginny when a pale, strong hand moved over her screen, lifting the phone from her grasp.  
“You see there’s an issue I take with that, Granger.” Draco smirked, tucking her phone into the inner breast pocket of his coat. “I planned on spending my evening drinking fire whiskey with you.” He put the long deep purple cigarette out on the cement wall of the pub while Hermione fussed about needing her phone back.  
“I follow through with my plans.” He leaned down to meet her gaze so that their faces were close. She stepped away and sighed.  
“If I stay for a drink,” She asked, “May I have my phone back?”  
“If you have such a horrible time, Granger,” He smirked, opening the door to, once again, another dimly lit pub, “that you cannot bear to have more than one drink, my treat, than by all means. Feel free to sprint from this pub as fast as those…. Very old shoes will take you.”  
Hermione scoffed, offended but did not argue the point that these were the only heels she had and the same ones she had worn to the Yule Ball at one time.  
“Do we have a deal then?” She looked into the confident, icy eyes that seemed to glow silver in the moonlight. She nodded, avoiding speaking in case her voice betray her and reveal that, at that moment, she felt an odd stirring somewhere within her. 

 

 

 

Hermione felt her back slam against a deep green wall but couldn’t feel a pang of pain as she normally would have associated the force with. She didn’t wait for one to come, either. She pushed back, passionately, and with absolutely all of the angst and anger she held within her.  
“That’s what I was waiting for.” She watched a growl follow those words out of the kiss-chafed ruby lips. A smile curled up upon them and Hermione felt her entire soul shoot down into her lower body and she let it take over the motions. Her body waved in rhythm to the soft but powerful music that played out of the radio in the next room to them.  
Draco grabbed Hermione’s wrists and pinned them above her head against the wall. She watched as he noticed her sharp intake of air and started in on her neck, issuing the warmest kisses she’d ever received in her life. Small bites every few kisses seemed to cause her brain to shut off every single logical function. She wasn’t stopping him and inner-Hermione was not lecturing her for it. ‘  
His teeth grazed her collarbone and she moaned, stopping herself halfway and pretending to have cleared her throat- she felt suddenly self conscious of her voice or any noises she was making.  
“Oh absolutely not.” Draco took both her wrists in one hand and moved the other to trace her jaw line before he moved his mouth there, too. “You don’t get to keep that from me.” He whispered in her ear. “I want to hear you.” His breath in her ear was scrambling her brain. She felt flustered and moaned all the while her cheeks filled with heat and she knew she was red and she felt her chest rising and falling rapidly.  
“If you think you can hide that from me,” His hand moved to her throat, a light grasp as he moved his thumb up and down, tightening every once in a while, just enough so that shockwaves of tingles shot up and down Hermione’s spine, “You’re very well mistaken.”  
He let go of Hermione’s wrists and she immediately threw all caution to the wind. If she was going to regret this, she wanted something good to regret. Something worth the shame.  
Her hands shot to his waist, his hips, she found the band of his briefs. She looked at him, she felt her face change. This time she was the one smirking at him. She watched as he seemed to take in the change. She bit her bottom lip, letting her hand travel down farther and watched him gasp.  
His eyes closed and his lips parted. She started kissing his chest, slowly lowering herself to her knees. She pulled his underwear down, so pleasantly surprised. She looked up to his face and found him watching her, calmly but with an eagerness in his eyes. She took him into her mouth and let her instinct take over. She listened to his breath quicken, taking direction from the way his knees seemed to get weaker and weaker. She let her lips glide up and down to the same beat of his breathing, matching- growing in speed until she felt a hand on her shoulder pushing her back.  
She looked up to smile at him but found a very different expression looking down at her. Before she knew what was happening she had been pulled up to her feet and Draco had her pinned to the wall, kissing her so hard she found herself breathless.  
“Merlin- fuck.” She heard him mutter as he pushed into her. She felt his hands slide down into her underwear. She let out a yelp as his fingers explored her.  
“Turn around.” He breathed into her neck.  
“What?” But she had apparently taken too long and she found herself turned into the wall before she even realized what was happening. Her underwear was being pulled downward and she felt Draco’s tongue massaging her as a string of explicits trailed out of her mouth.  
“Language, Granger. I have neighbors.”  
“Shut up!” She shot back.  
“Noted.” She felt his tongue caressing her and making her knees weak. Her moans grew in volume and the silence between them shortened. Hermione was close to full-blown yelling when she realized Draco has raised to his feet behind her. He was staring at her, daringly. She started to turn, wondering what he was about to do when he shook his head.  
“Stay there.” He smirked. She turned, placing her hands on the wall, fully ready for what was coming next. She felt him push inside her and cried out. Her moans and gasps were loud enough that she wasn’t aware of Draco groaning and cursing behind her. She felt a hand, swift and strong, land on her ass with a pleasurable sting and she moaned louder.  
“Ah fuck.” Draco yelled out. “For Merlin’s sake, Hermione.” She found herself coming nearer to climax as her name fell out of his mouth.  
“Yeah?” She said, impishly and heard the groan of approval as Draco pumped faster into her.  
“Hermione,” He said louder, another crack and tingle as his hand, unmistakably, left a mark on her. “Say my name.” He yelled out.  
“Draco!”  
“Fuck!”  
“Tell me you’re mine.” He demanded, she felt him close to the edge, his pumps short and hard and she knew she was too.  
“I’m all yours.” She gasped, sweat pouring down her chest. “I’m all yours Draco.” She felt a release within her at the name leaving her lips. She felt a warmth spread within her and she wanted to collapse. 

 

 

“OH FOR FUCK’S SAKE.” Hermione was swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, tangled in the silky black sheets, twisting her legs to detangle herself and in turn disturbing the entire bed.  
“Language, Granger.” A muffled voice replied. “Neighbors.”  
“It’s nine bloody thirty.” She scowled at the back of the white blonde head and scrambled for her bottoms or her tops- quite honestly she didn’t care. She just needed any article of clothing.  
“So?” Draco turned to watch her scramble, half amused and half annoyed.  
“Work!” Her hands flew up and her hair ruffled.  
“Call in.” He shrugged. “Come back here.”  
“We’re not both calling in.”  
“Oh?” He laughed. “Is that? Granger, could it possibly be? You’re embarrassed of the rumors that might spread?”  
“Shut up, Malfoy.”  
“Deja vu.” His eyes sparkled mischievously. “I think you said that same thing last night.”  
“How are you not at all embarrassed?” She paused, pulling on her bra and underwear, to look at him, clearly.  
“Why on earth should I feel embarrassed?” He rolled, now, to face her completely.  
“Great. Am I the only person you know with any sense of shame?”  
“Hermione.” He crawled over and grabbed her hand, tugging her so that she fell back onto the bed. “Just quit thinking so much.”  
“Right.” She rolled her eyes. “Let me just stop that.”  
“Shhh.” He held a finger to his mouth while pulling her closer, closing his eyes. “Shhh.” He repeated. “Put the blanket back on.”  
She rolled her eyes yet found herself convinced with every tug closer to him. She wondered to herself exactly what the hell she’d gotten herself into but found that her mind grew quieter with each small breath on her neck. She turned over and Draco draped an arm around her middle, yanking her in so his stomach lay against her back.  
She drifted off as their breaths fell in sync and the sun threw warm rays on the duvet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have never really shipped Dramione considering the fact that Draco was horrible to Hermione throughout her entire existence. I also believe that Hermione's Virgo-ness and wonderful sense of self-esteem would alloy how room from Draco's Gemini bullshit but feeling a little raw and confused by a recent breakup from Ron and having had enough of Ron's Pisces emotional mood swings leaves her open and vulnerable to a lot of possibilities.


	3. An inevitable hurricane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ron let's his guard fully down around Luna. -On accident.

Ron rolled lazily over on the couch and rubbed his sleep-crusted eyes. He could hear crunching of some sort. His eyelids lifted to see Luna, hair up in a messy bun like a halo as sunlight illuminated it. He smiled at her, sleepily, as she rolled what she called a "joint". He had become so enamored with the way her fingers, so delicate and diligent, did such delinquent things. The first few weeks they started dating she made sure to not smoke around him.  
It wasn't that he was uptight, of course. He just... well, he usually just stuck to legal stuff.  
"For the youngest of us brothers he's always been a little stuffy." He remembered Fred saying once. His cheeks went scarlet thinking about how he used to loathe Fred and George thinking of him as the "conservative" Weasley when that role was definitely best slotted for Perc.  
"How was your nap?" Luna scooted closer and placed two dainty kisses on each of his eyelids.  
"How long did you let me drift off for?"  
"It was about an hour." She smiled at him. He sat bolt upright, checking the time.  
"Luna, we were supposed to be round to Neville's at four."  
"It's okay," She giggled. "I sent Pigwidgeon saying we'd be there a little late, but be there shortly no less."  
"Oh good." He let relief wash over him as he yawned, savoring the way his legs and arms tingle with fresh energy.  
"Would you like to join me?" She smiled up at him and nodded toward her patio.  
"I dunno' Lun. I always gets whacky on that stuff." 

Ron choked and gasped as Luna just stared at him with those orbs for eyes, waiting for his fit to pass.  
"Never get used to it, eh?"  
"If you smoke more than once a month, you do." She turned to dangle her legs over the edge.  
"Afternoon Luna!" A squat woman called from the flat across the alleyway as she hung some towels out of her window to dry.  
"Good afternoon Maebe!" Luna waved, completely unabashed while Ron did his best to conceal the joint by their thighs.  
"Having' a good one, are ye'?"  
"Oh, always, Maebe. Sundays are my favorite." Luna was making her fingers walk, and hop, back and forth on the wooden handrail. Ron started to feel the joint burning his fingertips.  
"Oh bless your heart child," Maebe waved her hand one last time before tucking her head back into her flat.  
"Merlin I thought she'd hop the ledge and join us for tea." Ron sputtered, shoving the joint back to Luna who laughed with her head back while she took one last long drag before putting the joint out on the newel.  
"I watch her cats when she's away." Luna said but her tone of voice implied that her mind was elsewhere, not in this conversation. "She's got a kneazle mix and doesn't even know. He's a cheeky little devil."  
"How'd a muggle get a kneazle mix?"  
"I reckon he spotted away to have a cozy life for himself that didn't include chasing supper down every night while it put up a fight." She said, airily. "Most living things prefer comfort." Her eyes rolled, lazily back to his. "It's the way we're built. Even kneazles." She stood up quickly but gracefully and held a hand out to help up Ron.  
"A kneazle in a muggle house." Ron shook his head, peering into the flat across the alley once more but could see no sign of anything besides the old squat woman working her way through a pile of dishes, with no magical aid, that would make Ron's mother sigh with exhaustion. 

 

“Good to see ya, mate.” Neville pulled Ron in for a hug and Ron smiled back with no sign of embarrassment at the fact that Neville had, just weeks earlier, experiences Ron in full lash-out mode.  
“Same, Neville.” Ron replied.  
“You look wonderful!” Luna smiled at Hannah who was holding out two cups of tea and wearing a vintage yellow wraparound dress.  
“Thank you.” Ron said, taking a cup of tea and looking around at the small cottage house Neville had just purchased. It looked like something out of a movie, to Ron, and quite honestly reminded him every bit of Luna’s apartment with the way every free inch was dedicated to greenery. These people loved their house plants.  
Ron looked down to find a brown long hair cat with a large face that resembled a dragon Ron had once seen Charlie pictured with.  
“Don’t mind Mimbulus.” Neville said, bending down to rub the cats forehead. “She always feels the need to introduce herself to company.”  
“Right. Nice to meet you.” Ron said back to her and Luna let out a small laugh of endearment.  
“The roast is almost done.” Hannah smiled from Ron to Luna, “We can sit in the living room until the timer goes off.” 

 

Ron had quite possibly never felt more out of place than sitting in a semi-circle and making conversations with this lot. Luna and Neville were talking animatedly about types of soils and plant care regimens and Hannah Abbott chimed in regularly enough, looking lovingly at her fiance and adamantly agreeing with Luna from time to time.  
Ron sat up a little straighter, trying to gather some courage to chime in at some point so he didn’t just appear to be a placeholder in the squashy floral couch when Hannah spoke directly to him.  
“So how is your sister?”  
“What?” Ron said, confused about when the subject had changed.  
“Ginny. She was really sweet in school. How is she?” Honestly Ron had forgotten that Hannah Abbott even went to Hogwarts the amount she ever talked then. Of course, Harry reminded him every time he and Harry found themselves discussing Neville and his newly established home life, she was one of the Hufflepuff kids who joined the D.A. but also spent the second year whispering about Harry every time he walked by. So Ron had no idea what to make of her.  
“She’s alright.” Ron said, rubbing his finger over a lump in the ceramic mug he was holding as there was a bump right under the handle that he had become entranced in ever since this conversation trailed off in a direction he wasn’t keen on.  
“Oh she’s marvelous!” Luna looked at Ron reassuringly as if she thought he was being shy. “She’s an awfully talented quidditch player, I’ve seen a few times now. Always so fast, she really does do a great job.”  
“Yeah.” Ron smiled and adjusted himself, wondering when on earth they were going to eat.  
“We should all go watch sometime!” Hannah suggested and Ron shrugged. Luckily the conversation was muted but a ringing in the kitchen that suggested dinner was served. 

Ron sat across from Hannah, even though he had specifically tried to take the chair across of Neville just to avoid having to keep making eye contact with this odd girl. She kept smiling at him as if he was a toddler. He assumed she felt sorry for him or maybe she thought he was dense, but he preferred if she left him to be dense without having to make stupid smiles at each other every time the conversation lulled. Sure, she was nice enough, he thought. But it was bloody annoying. He just wanted to eat dinner and get out of there.  
“Is this meat?” Ron asked, cautiously, at the round lump that sat in the center of the table, a knife slicing it into pieces as spoons dished servings of potatoes out on every plate.  
“Yeah.” Hannah laughed and looked at Neville he assured Ron “I couldn’t do away with it, yet. Hannah and Luna have been trying to get me to go without for a year now.”  
Ron watched as Luna and Hannah’s plates filled up double with potatoes and roast carrots and beans and he watched Luna as she smiled at him and took her fork to start in on her dinner- which, in Ron’s opinion, looked wholly sad and lacking.

“So you lot, like, really really like your veg then?” Ron said once he and Luna were safe outside after having hugged Hannah and Neville and promising to be back for more Sunday dinners.  
She laughed at his serious expression and said “You don’t need meat, Ronald. Nobody does.” but he shrugged and muttered “I like my dinners satisfying, thank you.”  
Luna took his hand and he braced himself for the swirling sensation that was inevitable. 

 

“Finally!” Harry burst through Ron’s door with a huge bag, looking sweaty and flustered. “A text every few days saying ‘I’m alright mate’ doesn’t mean I’m not worried about you, you idiot.”  
“That’s no way to talk to a host.” Ron still stood at the door, holding it open with a slightly confused expression on his face.  
“It’s been two weeks since your wonderful performance at the nightclub.” Harry threw the bag down and started rummaging through it. “Here’s some soup.” He set down a container on Ron’s coffee table with a loud thug. “Here’s a cheering potion from your mum.” He threw another container down on the coffee table. “And here,” He brought out an oddly lumpy looking sweater that looked like it was made in a hurry. “Is a sweater from your mum.”  
“It’s nearly summer! Why would I need that?”  
“She heard about what happened, mate.” Harry stared at Ron with an air that suggested he had had enough but Ron was just staring back, confused and dumbfounded.  
“I said I’m alright, mate!” Ron’s shoulders lifted and his voice when up a pitch as he ended the sentence, though, suggesting that maybe a text made it easier to lie.  
“Oh come off it.” Harry spat. “This place looks horrible.” He gestured to the takeout boxes peeking out of a bin and blankets piled on the floor near the couch and a wilted plant near the window.  
“Ay!” Ron argued, “This place looks like this all the time.” Yet he found himself picking the blanket up to fold it at he yelled, “I don’t come into your flat and tell you it looks like rubbish.”  
“Ron,” Harry said, his tone short and impatient, “You yelled at Ginny and I.”  
“Yeah. Well.” Ron’s eyes surveying the floor, avoiding Harry’s.  
“I told you once I don’t need to tell you again, Ron. I hate not talking with you. I hate it. I didn’t know any such thing had happened with Malfoy and Hermione.” He took a deep breath, apparently filling his lungs with the ammunition to bulldoze Ron in the event he might try to interrupt Harry and yell some more. “I don’t even think anything really happened, mate. She was just embarrassed that we found out she started being friends with him.”  
“Friends.” Ron spat. “The same way she and Krum are friends?”  
“Ron!” Harry cut him off, quickly, “We’ve been to Krums. All of us. You know there’s nothing between them.”  
“Oh right.” Ron gave him a look of utter disbelief. “She wrote him novels while we were together and always hid them away when I came in the room.”  
“Ooh you great git!” Harry cried, “Who do you think she talks to when you annoy her? She’s got to leave Ginny out, you’re her brother. She can’t well talk to me- I’m shit at taking sides. We’ve all seen it.” Harry watched Ron’s face, carefully. “I wasn’t even supposed to say anything but last fall when Krum came down to visit he went home… with” Harry shifted, visibly uncomfortable. “With Seamus.” Harry shuddered.  
Ron’s mouth fell agape.  
“You look like a fish, stop staring like that.”  
“Krum’s gay?” Ron stared, still, dumbfounded.  
“He’s bi- Oh I don’t know Ron, he’s figuring it out. Stop asking me you should ask Hermione.”  
“I’m not speaking to her.”  
“You’re being a prat!” Harry yelled. “We’ve been friends since we were 11. Stop acting like a git, for Merlin’s sake. It’s not like you’ll never see each other again.”  
“Oh can you just go if you’re just going to bother me about this?” Ron said.  
“I want lunch.” Harry said, bitterly, through a clenched jaw.  
“Oh.” Ron let his shoulders drop, suddenly more relaxed. “You don’t want that soup, I’m guessing?”  
“It’s ruddy horrible. Ginny tried her hand at healing magic. She’s a bloody awful cook.”  
Ron couldn’t stifle his laughter at the image of Ginny setting foot in a kitchen when mum wasn’t ordering her to.  
“Catch a quidditch game at the pub?”  
“Of course,” Harry replied. “I’ve got money on it against Dean.”

 

 

Ron felt a weight lifted once he was on speaking terms with Harry again. He didn’t feel obligated to spend all of his evenings hoping Luna was free or not sick of him yet. It’s not that he hadn’t loved learning every spot of her that made her quake with lust but he didn’t want her getting sick of him yet. Not when it had barely been two months of late night romps, early morning romps and lunch break romps.  
Despite her quirks and the odd things she went on about for hours he also just felt like he wanted to be around her all the time. He loved the smell of her skin and the she somehow smelled like eucalyptus when she would sweat. He liked hearing her both of her laughs, the one like chimes in the wind and the throatier one that she let out after she smoked.  
He sat on the edge of her bed, watching steam curl out from under the door and listening to her voice, a beautiful melody carrying out- wooden door be damned- into the entire flat as the shower acoustics proved a wonderful megaphone for her voice.  
He lay back, stretching his arms out, following the swirls and tangles of the lace canopy above him, listening as the shower carried on.  
“Ronald Weeeeasley.” He heard as the water stream abruptly stopped. He sat up, smiling.  
“I’m back, Ron.” Luna said in a sing-song voice, opening the door. He immediately took in her smooth pale legs, peeking out from a fuzzy sunshine yellow towel. He shoulders shone, still wet from the shower, her blonde hair sticking to her neck and arms.  
“Hello.” He said, softly.”  
“Hello again.” She corrected him, as he had arrived on her doorstep to dry Luna in a towel asking him to wait inside while she showered, quickly.  
“Sure.” He said. “Whatever.” She let out a small laugh and strode over to the bed.  
“You’re beautiful.” He pulled her to him completely and blissfully unbothered by her hair dripping onto him and she leaned over him, for once, and bent down to kiss him.  
“I love thataboutyou.You’resobeautiful.” He felt himself correct what was about to slip out of his mouth as quickly as he could muster.  
“You’re beautiful, as well, Ron.” Luna laughed, dropping the town and pushing Ron back onto the bed. He felt himself grow red and warm but for all Luna knew it was from her sudden, much appreciated, nakedness. He knew he had nothing to be embarrassed about. He hadn’t uttered a word that he hadn’t already said. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she sat atop him, leg on each side, and felt him grow more and more excited with every breath.  
“No I mean it.” He whispered into her ear and felt her breasts press against him.  
“I know.” She said back, finding his shirt and lifting it over his head. “I know, Ron.”  
She moved her hips back and undid his belt. She looked up at him with a dreamy grin and said “Hey. I got someone for you.”  
“I don’t need it right now, Lun.” He said, blankly. She laughed.  
“Just wait.” She got up and strode out of the room. Ron busied himself pulling his muggle jeans off and discarding his shoes and socks. He sat in boxers on the bed awaiting her return.  
“Luna, seriously. Come back here.” He called out as he heard rustling around in the living room.  
“Just a moment, Ron!” She called back and her heard a distinct grunt of someone struggling with something. “I need some help, Mister Weasley.”  
“What?” He rolled his eyes but raised up off the bed and followed her voice stopping dead in his tracks once he reached the doorway.  
Luna was standing in the middle of the floor. He wanted to both grab her instantly and also laugh. Her hair was still trailing down her back but now it was black.  
“What’s that on your head?” He asked, holding back a chortle.  
“I learned a quick bit of transfiguration.” She smirked. “It’s been wonderful traveling around London as a different person every time I leave the flat.”  
“Different person? Your face is the same, Lun.”  
“You know what I mean,” She spun around and drew his attention down to her body, which he didn’t need to be told twice to take in. She was wrapped in something that looked like one long strap of leather wrapped, extravagantly, around her body making her appear somehow both dangerous and enticing.  
“What’s that?” He asked thickly, pointing at the something Luna was concealing in her hands.  
“Something for you.” She held out a pair of of metal circles that somewhat resemble ministry shackles that used to be used in the dark ages.  
“And those are?”  
“Handcuffs.” She laughed. “I got them at this wonderful muggle shop all about sex.”  
“Oh no, Luna. I don’t want to be held up in a muggle contraption that I know nothing about.”  
“I wasn’t going to use them.” She smirked. “You are. Just trust me, Ron.” He felt his heartbeat quicken.  
“I’m using those? For what?” 

 

Ron and Luna lay curled and entwined in her bed staring upwards. Ron was robbed of words as Luna breathed gracefully, staring at the side of his face.  
“Was that okay?” She asked him. Her voice was soft and she seemed to be studying his every breath.  
“Luna.” He looked down and her small adorable face, her hair blonde again, having asked her to change it back before they had sex. “You’re a nutter.”  
“It’s a perfectly normal thing to do.” She looked back up at the canopy and made walking movements with her fingers, apparently walking the length of the canopy in her mind. “Loads of people have sex like that.”  
“It was great-” He sat up on his side and leaned over his pouring his appreciation into a long kiss. “I like everything you do.”  
“But?” She pulled back to look deeply into his eyes.  
“It’s not a ‘but’!” Ron laughed and kissed her again, deeply. “But” He added, laughing nervously. “I like you. I love the way we are normally.” He started kissing her neck softly.  
“I just thought it was fun.” Luna said in a light-hearted way.  
“Oh god.” Ron pulled back immediately. “Wait.” He stared at her face, a giant pit where his stomach was a second before this. “Is our sex boring?”  
“Ron!” Luna laughed, heartily and for once he did not appreciate it. “No!” She pulled him back onto her, this time fully over her. He felt himself resting between her thighs and tried to ignore the stirring that was happening. “I don’t think anything about you is boring.” She said and felt a cloud of happiness enter his chest and his stomach return to normal. Without even realizing it Ron had spent the entire past two and a half months assuming he was the normal one in this relationship, even boring. He hadn’t realized this bothered him so much until those words left Luna’s lips. He smiled brightly down at her.  
“Are you certain?” He asked, now just wanting to her say it again.  
“I like everything about you, Ron.” She pulled him down for a kiss. “We can have a do-over if you want the proof.” She laughed.  
God he loved that laugh. He started moving his hips in a slow and fluid motion, feeling himself find her, coming as natural to him as breathing or walking. She breathed sharply and he watched her face change from dreamy and distant to instinctual and hungry.  
“Oh god I love that.” He said out loud and watched her close her eyes to moan as he thrust into her, letting her warmth and wetness hug him, tightening down on him.  
“Oh fuck.” He grabbed her headboard for stability. “Luna. I can’t-” He felt his pace quicken, he was so sensitive from already coming. “I’m not gonna-”  
“Look at me, Ron.” She said in a soft but stirn tone that he appreciated greatly. He looked down at her face as she took his hand from the headboard bring one of his fingers to her puffy lips.  
“Oh god Luna I swear-” But her warm wet lips wrapped around his finger and a guttural growl escaped his throat. She sucked hard as he slammed into her. She watched him, mesmerized by the plain ecstasy that played on his face. His lips soften but his eyes hardened as he watched her, piercingly. She let her tongue work its way up and down his finger in the same way she let it find its way around his dick.  
“Merlin Luna you’re killing me.” He said but he knew there was no way he was lasting any longer. He felt his muscles tighten and he groaned loudly, causing the bird that sat on the branch outside of Luna’s open window, to take flight. He felt a flood of electricity flow through him as he released.  
“Merlin, Luna.” He rolled over onto his side so he could look at her. She was looking at him with a satisfied smile. “You think you’re clever, eh?” He asked. “I can tell. You think you’ve really pulled on off.”  
“Well.” She shrugged. “I think I made up for the confusing wardrobe.” Ron laughed picturing his frustrations, trying to get Luna out of the bloody leather strap that she had called an “outfit”.  
“Oh and then some.” He smiled, lifting her face to his so he could kiss her.  
“I’m sorry- next time I’ll ask you what you prefer before I go purchasing things muggle aurors use.” She laughed.  
“Don’t be sorry, Luna.” He laughed, laying back down. “I love you enough that anything-” He cut off immediately and cleared his throat. “I heard my phone, sorry, mate.” He sat up, quickly. “That’ll be Harry.” He lied, “We had plans, tonight. I’m running real late, he’s gonna’ think I’m a git.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always thought of Ron as being the type to be really sensitive but only in the private moments he shares with his partners.


	4. A tense quiet (Earth&Air pt 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A culmination of timing and luck do Hermione in as she watches her decisions crumble around her. As she looses her footing in life, Draco Malfoy sees an opportunity to be the support he never received when he needed it most.

“Want some?” Hermione had stumbled into the gray room decorated with candles, an ornate dining table, a chandelier and beautiful silky-looking walls. Draco was holding a pot of something that was emmenating steam. “It’s great quality. I get it imported.” Hermione rolled her eyes. Of course he did.   
“What time is it?” She said, adjusting her skirt and top while Draco sat, comfortably, in a plush robe reading a newspaper.   
“Does it matter?” He looked up, briefly. “You’re not going to make it into the office today, anyway.”   
“I was supposed to meet Ginny for brunch.” She sighed.   
“Unless brunch is eaten at,” Draco checked his watch, lazily, “Four pm, you’ve missed it by a good deal.”   
“Oh god.” Hermione took a seat at the table and helped herself to a cup of tea.   
“Why do you insist on using muggle vernacular? It makes you seem uneducated.” Draco was now fully emerged in the newspaper.   
Hermione ignored his rudeness and instead asked him why he hadn’t woken her when he got up.   
“I wanted a few moments silence before the interrogation begins.”   
“I’m not going to interrogate you. I barely want to remember what happened last night, myself.” A corner of the newspaper folded down and Draco’s playful grey eyes peered over at her.   
“It’s been questions ever since you entered the room.” He pushed the paper back up to read it, “And not one of them was ‘how, did you sleep, Malfoy?’”   
“Oh stop.” She scoffed, wondering at what point in the day she was supposed to leave.   
“If you like suspense we could see a muggle film later.” His voice drifted over the paper.   
“Why in the bloody hell would I go to a movie with you?” She asked. “Honestly, why am I even here? Why are you acting so oddly?”   
“Ah,” He smiled, folding the paper and tucking it under a plate that held one untouched piece of toast and the corner of another piece that had been thoroughly devoured. “So we still haven’t quite left the interrogation phase.”   
Hermione glared at him as her stomach grumbled, much to her annoyance. He slid the plate with the untouched piece of toast towards her. She suddenly had no dignity to turn down his offer and started in on the toast.   
“I’m not interrogating you.” She said and he waved her away.   
“You’re nervous. It’s fine.”   
“I am not.” She objected but he kept on.   
“First of all, you’re welcome to join me this evening. I’m not keeping you hostage. It’s your choice.” He smirked. “Secondly, I’m not the one that’s acting all jumpy. I’m acting quite normal you notice. And that’s because I just had a really nice night and I’m not overthinking it, Granger.”   
She noticed they were back to last name basis and blushed remembering her reaction to her name leaving his mouth last night.   
“So what is this, then?” She asked.   
“Granger you know as well as I do that if we’re seen in public together we’ll both denounce each other.”   
“Great.” She scoffed. “I’m glad we’re on the same page.”   
“I’m not going to sit here and pretend like there will ever be a day where I ask you to become a Malfoy-”   
“I would never.”   
“See?” He sipped his tea, smiling. “Same page”   
“Great.” She noticed the foot that was crossed over the other was rapidly bouncing as her annoyance heightened.   
“So you’ll see a film with me, then?” He smirked.   
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever Malfoy, I’ve got nothing better to do.” 

 

 

 

 

“Where’ve you been these past two weeks.” Ginny laughed, watching Arnold traipse around the kitchen floor as she pushed a plate of Molly Weasley’s tarts towards Hermione and set a cup of coffee down in front of her.   
“Working.” She said shortly, but in a gentle manner. She picked up a tart and welcomed the familiar taste of holidays and gift packages from the Burrow on her tongue.   
“How hard have they been working you? Dad says your out of office so much he can barely keep track except for the fact that you leave the most detailed packets under his door every night.” Ginny sat down at the kitchen island once the cream and sugar was out and started fixing herself a cup. Hermione felt a horrible feeling in her stomach rise as the guilt bubbled in the pit of it all.   
“Pansy’s a lot easier to deal with than she was as a teen.” Hermione mumbled.   
“Dad says she’s a lot sweeter than she seems outwardly.” Ginny sighed. “I love dad and all but he’s way too trusting.”   
“He really is.”   
“He misses you coming round on the weekends, ‘Mione.” Ginny said softly as if waiting for the inevitable objection.   
“I miss seeing him outside of work, too.” Hermione sighed. “I bet Molly is happy, though.” She looked up quickly to catch Ginny averting her eyes.   
“Mum’s always going to want her youngest boy to be happy. You know what she’s like.” And Hermione nodded. She knew.   
The first Christmas she spent as Ron’s girlfriend was filled with glances and looks from Molly that were far different from anything she received as a kid- except the year that Molly thought she was two-timing Harry. Hermione rolled her eyes at the memory of it all.   
“Anyways,” Ginny perked up, changing the subject. “Hannah Abbott’s invited us round this saturday.”   
“Really?” Hermione sat up a little straighter. “What for?”   
“I think she’s going to tell us Neville’s purposed.” Ginny smiled.   
“Oh that’s really wonderful.” Hermione said, wholeheartedly.   
“Right?” Ginny agreed, beaming. “Neville really deserves this. And Hannah is so sweet.”   
“Y’know” Hermione said, laughing, “The last two times we bumped into them Ron introduced himself to her. He’s so dense, sometimes.”   
“Oh bloody hell.” Ginny snorted. “I hope Neville doesn’t leave him out of the wedding invite.” 

 

 

 

 

“You forgot this at my flat, Granger.” An arm reached between her and Pansy as they went over Pansy’s notes on her interview with the muggle Doctors from the day previous. A pair of her earrings lay flat on the desk beside her and her cheeks went ablaze. Her mouth hung open as she turned to see Draco strolling away, already reaching the door of his office.   
“Nice one.” Pansy sneered, not holding back the amusement on her face.   
“No-” Hermione started but found herself stuck for words. “Those aren’t mine.” She said but knew Pansy wasn’t buying it for a second. She grabbed the earrings and stormed after Malfoy.   
She slammed the door to his office shut with a little too much force. Wizards popped their heads up over cubicles to see the cause of commotion.   
“Excuse me?” Malfoy smiled deviantly up at her. “Was there a problem, Granger? I’m not taking appointments today.”   
“Malfoy.” She held the earrings up. “Was this your idea of entertainment?” She turned to look a Pansy whose head was tucked down again, leaning over a desk and a quill marking things, passionately.   
“I mean,” He laughed, “The look on your face was funny, definitely.”   
“You’re the worst.” She stomped and threw the earrings down.   
“Granger, are you having a tantrum?” The amusement that danced across Malfoy’s lips was infuriating.   
“Do not talk to me.” She spat. “Unless it’s strictly work related.”   
“Really?” He raised an eyebrow.   
“I’m serious.” But she noticed the windows of Dracos dim as he waved his wand, delicately but with precision.   
“What are- Well that’ll look awfully suspicious, Malfoy.” She sneered turning to leave but found herself pulled back by her arm.   
“It’s a discretion charm, Granger.” He leaned down close to her face. “Made it up myself. To the outside this looks like an empty office.”   
She wanted to protest his grasp on her but she was also impressed by this neat bit of magic.   
“So what constitutes as ‘work related’?” He asked laying a kiss low on her neck. She started to push him back but his grip remained firm around her arm. “Really, Granger. I’m curious.” He laid another kiss on her jaw line and she tried not to let her quickening breath obvius. “I’d love for you really walk me through that.” He pulled back and scrunched his nose up at her and let a crooked grin spread across his face. Merlin she hated him. She wanted to say something quippy, something that both annoyed him and aroused him but she couldn’t find her tongue.   
“Thought so.” He laughed and moved his hand to the back of her neck as he leaned down and kissed her deeply, letting his tongue lightly caress her bottom lip.   
“Better get back to work, Granger.” He pulled away and she found herself infuriated at herself for being baited into the situation. “And you might want to fix that.” He nodded at her shirt which had come untucked from her dress pants. She quickly adjusted herself, shot him a scathing look and left his office without a look back in his direction. 

 

 

Hermione sat in the large group of girls, laughing and remembering countless times they’d snuck fire whiskey into the common rooms. Hermione stole glances at Ginny who had her arm draped around Hannah, making sure she felt more than welcome. She was so lucky to be a part of this group of wonderful women, she thought to herself.   
“How have you been?” A dreamy voice called Hermione’s attention back to the conversation.  
“Oh! I’ve been fine, Luna. How about you?”   
“Really glad to be back.” Luna smiled airily and appeared to be taking in the air around her. Hermione wondered to herself whether she was counting Wrackspurts or something equally as odd.   
“That’s wonderful, Luna.” Hermione sighed. “How’s the guy you were seeing? Ralph, was it?” Luna’s already comically large eyes widened.   
“Rolf and I split up. I thought you knew.”   
“Oh! Luna, I’m so sorry.” Her hand moved to her forehead as the other one laid on Luna’s wrist. “I’ve been so distracted and busy.” She took a huge gulp of her butterbeer and admitted out loud for the first time, “I really started working on this new project to distract myself from thinking about Ron, you know? Since we split up. I’m sure you understand.”   
Luna’s eyes turned downward and she seemed immediately tuned out to the conversation. Hermione scolded herself inwardly for putting all of that onto Luna when they hadn’t even spoken much since Hermione left Hogwarts.   
“Great pub, isn’t it?” Hermione asked and Luna shrugged, smiling somewhat distractedly at her but shifting her body towards to larger group of girls around them. Ginny caught Hermione shifting uneasily slightly away from Luna and called the attention down towards her end of the table.   
“Hey, Hermione knows someone who can get us into a really upscale club in central London. Anyone keen?”   
“What?” Hermione mouthed.   
“Pansy.” Ginny mouthed back   
“No.” Hermione accidentally replied audibly.   
“What’s happening?” Poor Hannah looked from girl to girl trying to decipher the other confused faces.   
“Listen,” Ginny said, walking around the table talk to Hermione one on one. “You said she’s actually kind of a laugh when she isn’t being a total cow.” Ginny tugged Hermione’s sleeve. “And if Blaise Zabini’s uncle owns that fancy muggle club she can probably get us in for cheap or free.”   
“Ginny I don’t think that’s a great idea…” Hermione said with a pleading expression.   
“Oh Hermione lighten up, I think we can all get to know her a little better. Plus dad says she’s really quite generous. Give her a ring, will you?”   
“Ginny she’s probably busy, with Blaise, you know.”   
“Hermione.” Ginny pretended to pout. “Don’t we all what to celebrate this night with music and, dare I say some good looking men?”   
“Only if there are also some good looking women.” Alicia protested.   
“It’s a club, Spinnet.” Ginny rolled her eyes. “I’ve never seen a woman clad in a snowsuit or covered ankle to neck in a single one of them.”   
“Then I’m in.” Alicia lifted her glass and the rest of the girls followed suit, to Hermione’s horror.

 

 

 

 

 

Hermione watched in horror as Ron read her face like a child’s book. Quick and effortlessly. His face hardened with rage. This was not how any of this was supposed to go. She had no words to offer him that weren’t bold faced lies. She looked from him to Pansy to Ginny trying to map or calculate the damage that was currently being done. She couldn’t think straight as Ron’s voice echoed over the sounds of Ginny and Harry’s inquiries. The music was too loud and the strobing lights were suddenly burning her eyes.   
“Ron-” She started but realized no sound had come from her mouth. He was already turning away from her. He yelled something to Luna. She watched Luna’s face as she studied Ron’s body movement. She saw something flicker in Luna’s eyes and she looked from Ron’s face to Luna’s to Ginny’s to Harry’s like a broken muggle pinball machine. She’d give anything for a time turner at this very moment. She wanted to stop. To absorb the information she was taking in- to fully understand. A few moments of quiet in a completely still and paused time so that she could discern the expression that Ginny wore as she watched the back of Ron push through the crowd and out of the club.   
“Hermione is this for real?” She heard Harry’s accusatory tone and felt a tear deep within her. She knew there was no possibility of a heart literally breaking yet she felt it happening. She didn’t think things were finished between her and Ron but now she had cemented the door shut. It was concrete. He’d never forgive her.   
“Hermione what the hell?” Ginny’s voice broke through what felt like a self-inflicted muffliato.   
“What?” She hadn’t noticed the tears streaming down her face. She saw Luna jerk away from the crowd. She watched her walking towards the exit.   
“Hey.” She called but Luna didn’t look back, her blonde head bobbed down the stairs of the dance until it was lost in a sea of people bobbing and weaving to music that sickened Hermione.   
“Hermione.” Her eyes followed the voice until they fell upon Ginny, who was red and breathing hard. Harry was standing beside her, a similar steely coldness washed upon his own face.   
Confused and breathless, she found herself needing refuge. The loud crack came as a relief and her feet planted themselves. She stared at the serpent knocker placed in the center of a deep green door.   
She rapped on it three short, but violently loud times. She heard footsteps closing the distance.   
“I prefer notice Grange-” Draco cut off mid-sentence seeing her misty, red eyes and the trails of moisture that lead from her big brown eyes, her eyelashes lumped together with tear drops, down to her neck. “I- what’s-” Draco seemed tense, uncertain if he had done something wrong. He hadn’t been arrogant or horrible to her and he could honestly say to himself that he was trying his best to be kind to her while he still enjoyed the spark of fury that burned behind her eyes when he purposely pushed her buttons.   
“Please.” She said, stifling another wave of tears. “Just be nice.” He felt his chest sink a little. He was so confused. “I just need you to be kind.”   
Without warning she was against his chest, her arms wrapped around his middle as the stood in the doorway for any onlooker to view. He pulled her inside and closed the door, he tilted her chin upwards so that he could view her face in full and get a better read of the emotions in her eyes. “Did something happen?” He asked, choosing his words carefully.   
“Yes.” She said simply, her chin quivering in a way that Draco hadn’t seen since his sixth year when he spent his evenings alone in the 2nd floor girls lavatory. His chest seemed to tighten. He didn’t want to allow this vulnerability. He had meant for this to be a very strict and direct relationship only meant for one thing yet he couldn’t turn her away, remembering how alone he felt that year. -Seeing a similar hurt in her eyes and he had once carried in his.   
“I’m sorry.” He said and leaned over to kiss her, hoping it was the right thing to do. She leaned into him. Hard. He didn’t mind her tears kissing his cheeks. He wrapped his arms around her, tightly and let himself kiss her fully. If this was what she needed at this moment he would be her temporary comfort. He had no desire to hurt her more than she had already been hurting. 

He led her, backwards, their mouths still tangled together, to his bedroom. She let him lead her, no questions and no hesitations. He turned to lay her down on the bed. She looked up at him and he felt his chest tighten again as she watched her with those deep brown eyes. Her tanned skin glowing in his candle lit bedroom. He bent over her and started lifting her dress up. She shifted her hips and back as it slid upward and off of her body. She sat up on her elbows, drinking in his body as he slid out of his button down shirt and the pants he wore that gave the appearance that he had just gotten home from an elaborate dinner.   
He dropped his clothes to the ground and crawled onto the bed, his hands on either side of Hermione, holding himself up above her. He brought himself down and kissed her deeply. She pulled him onto her and let herself fully taste the warmth of his mouth. She rolled him over so that she hovered above him, sitting up, knees on either side of his hips. She reached behind her and undid her bra. She watched as Draco soaked in the sight in front of him. His hands moved to her breasts and he cupped them, sitting up to bring himself closer to her. He listened to her breathing as he let his mouth wander to one of her nipples. He pulled, lightly on her underwear and she stood to remove them. Draco had stood up to remove his briefs as well.   
“Merlin.” He breathed, pulling her into him and pressing her gorgeous body against his. He guided her, backwards, to the bed and, in sync, they crawled onto it, Hermione not parting her mouth from his. She lay her head back on a pillow and pulled away, looking into his eyes. He looked back at her, a depth of understanding that, she was willing to bet, nobody else could possibly give to her at that exact moment.   
A moan escaped her lips as he pushed into her, cradling her head in her arms. He rocked, gently, groaning as he gathered speed.   
“Hey.” He called to her as she started closing her eyes to let her lust take over. She looked up to see his eyes, sultry and longing, looking at her, drinking in her moans and shifts and squirms. “Stay with me.” He asked. “Don’t go somewhere else.”   
She understood at once as his movement became slow, fluid and purposeful. He brought his mouth to hers and his pace quickened, his groans vibrating on Hermione’s lips, causing her to echo them in her own, quieter pitch.   
Her hand flew up above her head, to grab hold of anything as she felt herself skirting the edge, all of her muscles tightening around Draco. She found his hand grasping hers, holding it steadily and as he pounded deep within her. She felt his moans becoming shorter and shorter and she pulled her mouth away and said “Come for me, Draco.”   
Something about the way she said his name made him lose it and he felt himself let go at the same time she had. Both of them, breathing heavily and sweating.   
He pulled himself away from her and found himself pulling her into the crook of his shoulder. He brushed her bushy hair off of her forehead and they lay in his bed, staring up towards the ceiling together, both wondering to themselves what they had just done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Draco Malfoy (although I don't have an exact birth TIME I'm going off of his birth date and place) is a Pisces moon. So no matter how much of a total git he is, there is a person underneath that cold and callous exterior.


	5. Twin Flames (Fire&Fire)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry finds himself stuck in the middle of everyone's anger.

“You can’t be totally blaming her for all of this.” Harry watched Ginny’s face harden and if it hadn’t been directed at him, he would have appreciated the Molly Weasley-esque wrathe she radiated under her mop of fiery red hair.   
“Ginny, she’s sleeping with Malfoy.”   
“Her sex life is none of our business.” She snapped. “She’s a grown woman who can do as she pleased.”   
“That’s not how you reacted to Ron kissing Luna.” Harry stated.   
“Oh please.” Ginny scoffed. “That’s different.”   
“How?” Harry asked, confused.   
“He’s my brother. She’s my friend.”   
“And?”   
“It’s just different, Harry.” She threw her dress down on the bedroom floor and shuffled through the dressed to find a pair of pajamas.   
“Ron’s an adult, as well. If he decides to take up with Luna, no matter how questionable the pairing, it’s not our place to stop them.”   
“Oh sod off.” She waved an empty hand as she pulled the earrings from her ear.   
“Hey!” He said back, shocked at her level of anger.   
“He’s barely an adult.”   
“Ginny.” Harry said, “We ought to let this rest. I don’t think you’re treating Ron fairly and you don’t agree with my take on things.” He slid into their bed and watched Ginny rip the blankets up and shove her legs down into the covers.   
“I never stated my allegiance or anything.” Ginny huffed, pulling the covers up past her nose, glaring at Harry with her brown almond shaped eyes. He wanted to laugh at how cute she looked but knew the wrath of a Weasley woman who thought she wasn’t being taken seriously. He held it in. “Look, Harry,” She took a deep breath. “I never said I thought it was a bloody splendid idea that Hermione shack up with one of the most revolting wizards ever to blemish the earth.” He smirked, loving Ginny’s sharp way with words. “I’m just saying…” Her eyes looked around as she gathered her words carefully. “Ron isn’t the easiest person to love. I’ve lived with him. He can be hard- he can be sensitive. If he doesn’t feel like he’s great at something immediately he’ll want an out.”   
“And Hermione isn’t someone to dote on every whimper and whine.” She continued. “I just thought they’d both have more sense than to just run off an hop into bed with someone else.”   
“I agree with you.” Harry said, smiling down at her and turning to whisper “Nox.” Downing the light from his wand that had acted as a nightlight while they bickered.   
“Good.” She whispered and moved close to him, the flowery scent of her hair growing stronger as she nuzzled her head into Harry’s neck. “Because I’m right.” Harry smirked to himself in the darkness and drifted off to sleep. 

 

 

 

 

“It’s been two weeks, he can’t just drop off the face of the earth.” Ginny said, her hair wild from being half-brushed that morning. She was pulling it high into a ponytail over the kitchen island while she pushed a sack towards Harry. “Take this over to his house and pound his door down, I don’t care.” She seethed. “He can’t avoid us forever.”   
Reluctantly, Harry took the bag and kissed Ginny’s forehead goodbye. “By the way,” He shot back at her as he pulled the door open, “Lookin’ good, Weasley.”   
“Ah!” Ginny grunted, a finger caught in the snarls of her hair. She yelled a parting sentiment that Harry thought would have been sweet had she not been attempting to break the handle off of a hairbrush. 

 

Finally Harry sat at the bar across from a TV playing some minor Quidditch league games as Bill poured butterbeers in two pint glasses and scribbled down their order in chicken scratch, calling back to the kitchen. A shrill witch hollered back and he made a gesture with his hand that, Harry knew, the witch couldn’t see.   
“It’ll be right out. Want some crisps while ya’ wait?” He asked, Harry nodded, noticing Ron was being oddly silent besides places his order for fried fish.   
“Sooo.” Harry drawled. He knew the topic he was about to broach was serious yet he couldn’t help feel oddly entertained by the whole of this mess. “How’s Luna, mate?”   
“Oh come off it, Harry.” Ron’s face grew red and Harry stifled a laugh.   
“I’m just curious. How does it all work?”   
“Like normal, Harry.” Ron spat. “I’ve never once asked about you and my bloody sister, mate.”   
“Right you are, mate.” Harry smiled. “But to be fair, you made it clear on more than one occasion that you’d prefer Ginny end up with me than Michael Corner or Dean.”   
“That’s different.” Ron took a deep drink from his pint. “Michael Corner was a right git and Dean- well, be honest, mate. How did those to even get together. It’s beyond me.”   
“I mean… I’m not saying I enjoyed it but it made even just slightly more sense than what’s taking place right now.”   
“Why is that, mate?” Ron made eye contact for the first time and Harry immediately stopped smiling. He could tell Ron was in no joking mood. His tone was tense.   
“Listen,” Harry tried backtracking. “I’m not saying you’re not a catch. You’re a great bloke, mate. I just didn’t see this coming.”   
“Yeah?” Ron eyes were still stoney but suddenly his jaw lost the tenseness that had drawn Harry back moments before. “Yeah. Me neither.” He sighed as two plates of fish suddenly appeared before them. Ron dug in, his appetite for greasy food almost insatiable.   
“I’ll just be glad as long as you’re okay, mate.” Harry said, watching Ron’s posture soften.   
“Oy.” Ron turned immediately, still chewing but looking suddenly bright and interested. “So Seamus and Krum?”   
“Ohhh, mate. If you didn’t know you’ve got to ask Seamus. Krum is into some freaky shit, apparently.” Harry laughed as Ron choked on his food.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't dare try to add smut into this chapter. I ship Hinny so hard and thus couldn't bring myself so attempt such a thing. I couldn't possibly do justice by the force of nature that is Ginny Weasley.


	6. The Eye of the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things quickly get confunded when Ron runs into the last person he wants to see while in search of some forgetfulness potion.

Ron paced back and forth from his bedroom to his living room, heart racing. He had really done himself in, now. He thought of calling Harry but couldn’t dare explain why he had said such a stupid thing out loud. He wasn’t about to talk to Ginny about this, either. She wouldn’t hear any such things and he couldn’t ask his sister to possibly listen to him ramble on about his relationship with her friend. George was busy enough as is and Percy was a fucking git. Neither Charlie nor Bill would have time, he already knew. Thought Charlie always knew what to say to him- somehow Dragons were a lot like women, making Charlie Weasley the wisest adviser in the Weasley family tree.   
His phone buzzed a few times on his bed and he couldn’t bring himself to approach it. He had no wish to read some text from Luna asking him to never contact her again. Instead he threw a hoodie over it, grabbed his wallet and left his apartment with one thing in mind. Booze. Lots of it. 

 

 

*CENTRAL LONDON*

Draco sat at the bar, sipping a brown liquor that slid over his tongue like maple syrup and he savored every drop of it, nodding to the bartender for more when he glass sank to recklessly low levels.   
“What are the plans for tonight, Mr. Malfoy.” The raven haired witch batted her thick eyelashes at him from behind the bar as she waved her wand and the lavish liquor rose again to a satisfying amount in his glass.   
“Not sure, yet, Astoria.” He said, dismissively. “You?”   
She seemed emboldened by his inquiry and leaned over the bar towards him. “Not sure yet, myself. I don’t get off until closing time.”   
“Shame.” He said slyly over the rim of his glass.   
“One glass of fire whiskey, please.” Draco heard a familiar voice to his left and his landed upon a mop of messy red hair. Astoria rolled her eyes and with a flick of her wand a glass grazed the bar and stopped in front of Weasley.   
“Top or bottom shelf?” She called down.   
“You should provide this man with great service.” He muttered to Astoria. “He’s had a rough one, it would seem.” Draco smirked.   
“It doesn’t matter.” Weasley said, distractedly.   
“Top it is,” Astoria had turned and walked down to where Weasley sat, this time pulling the short round bottle of Fillander’s Finest from the top rail of the bar. She winked at the somber looking wizard and said in a sultry voice that Draco recognized from the many times she had spoken to him at length on slow nights, “That’s on me, hun.” And set a hand on his arm. He shifted uncomfortably and Draco accidentally let out a small snarky laugh. Weasley’s eyes drifted down the bar and realized, suddenly, Draco’s presence.   
“Ah, fuck.” Weasley said, exasperated. “You’ve got to be bloody kidding me.”   
“What’s wrong, Weasley? Troubles?” Draco sneered. He had spent his youth watching Weasley and Potter excel at everything by sheer luck and reputation. He savored this look of defeat on the youngest Weasley boys’ face.   
“No, thank you very much.” Weasley scowled down the bar, drank the entire contents of his glass and pushed his bar stool back as if to get up.   
“Here.” He shoved a stack of knuts toward Astoria as she insisted on it being her treat. “I have to find a bar with a better crowd.” He nodded to Astoria and turned to head off.   
“What’s wrong, Weasley? You don’t fancy a chat?” Draco stood up quickly to follow Ron.   
“No, Draco. I don’t reckon I do.” Ron turned, looking Draco from top to bottom and back, disgust plainly on every inch of his face.   
“So hostile.” Draco laughed.   
“It’s the air in here.” Ron snarled. “It’s a bit stuffy for me.”   
“That’s odd.” Draco sneered. “Your girlfriend seems to think wherever I am is a very fine place to be.”   
“What did you say?” Ron turned on the spot to look Draco Directly in the eye.   
“I’m pretty confident you heard me correctly, Weasley.” His grin looked malicious as he soaked in Ron’s expression of horror. “I said,” He said stepping so close to Ron that he could feel his heated breath. “Your girlfriend seems to think I’m alright. Even better than alright, actually. Last night the neighbors complained she was screaming my name too loudly.” He was about to make a joke that not even a silencing charm could stop Hermione’s voice from carrying when Ron’s fist connected, squarely, with Draco’s nose. He felt a crack and the warmth of gushing blood alongside the sound of Astoria yelling, angrily. He head the door to the pub open and close with a loud BANG and Astoria muttering a quick spell followed by another CRACK, putting Draco’s nose right again.   
“Are you okay?” She said, “Tergeo.” and he felt the immediate absence of hot thick blood on his face and neck.   
“Yeah,” He seethed. “Just needed to get something off my chest.” He spat.   
“I can’t take care of the bruising, I only know simple healing spells.” Astoria said to him, looking pale. He shook his head, dismissing her as he turned to leave the bar. He stepped outside into the warm early summer night and with a loud CRRRACK he disapparated instantly. 

 

Hermione swung her front door open to see Draco standing there looking pale as if the blood had drained from his face. She gasped in horror as dark bruises pooled around both of his eyes.   
“Merlin’s beard what happened?” She managed to choke out.   
“Can I come in?” He asked in a mixture of annoyance and something else Hermione couldn’t quite read.   
“Draco, what’s happened? Here. I’ll get some ice.” She hurried to the kitchen to create a makeshift ice pack out of ice and a towel. “Here,” He handed it to him and said “Put it on your face.” When he looked at it questioningly.   
“If this some muggle shit?”   
“It will stop the swelling. I can perform a healing spell but I need the swelling to subside first.”   
“Hermione.” He shot her a glance as she watched him place the ice on his left eye, winging painfully. “Did you tell anyone about us?”   
“What?” She asked much too quickly. “Why?”  
“I’m asking you. Does anyone else know about what’s going on between us besides Pansy?”   
She looked at him, horrified and apologetic as realization dawned over her.   
“Oh my god. Draco.”   
“Yeah.” He said, letting annoyance have full dominion over his features now. “Figured so.”   
“I’m so sorry! I never thought he would do this.” She started fretting with her hair, not certain of what she could possibly do to remedy the situation.   
“Yeah. Because Weasley’s never been known to fly off the handle before.” Draco scoffed.   
“How did this happen?” She said looking sincerely concerned.   
“He stormed into Serpent tonight, yelled something I couldn’t quite make out and then hauled off and punched me.” Draco moved the ice pack onto his other eye and looked at the couch beside him.   
“Sit down, of course. I’m so sorry.” Hermione made a gesture for him to sit and he followed. “I can’t believe this.” Hermione wrung her hands, pacing back and forth between bookshelves.   
“Quit doing that.” Draco glared at her through one deep purple eyelid. “It hurts to follow you around like that.”   
“Oh.” she said rushing to her kitchen to find a small vial labeled “for major pain”.   
“Take this shoved a warm teacup into his hands.   
“What’s in it.” He shot her a wary glance.   
“A simple pain relief potion. The bruises won’t cause so much irritation then.”   
“You can fix this, right?” He eyes her up, sipping from the cup. “I can’t go into work like this.”   
“Of course.” She said. “Also,” she said warmly but warningly, “That might make you sleepy. So you might want to just lay down right now.”   
“Granger are you trying to baby me?”  
“Of course not!” Her offended tone making him smile, this time he didn’t wince from the pain. He quickly gulped the rest of the contents of the cup. He felt himself drift off to sleep as Hermione sat beside him eyeing him with great worry. 

 

 

 

“Hey.” Hermione said softly as Draco opened his eyes to bright flecks of sunlight dancing through the drawn shades. He went to rub his eyes but immediately pulled his hands at his sides.   
“It’s alright.” She assured him. “I used an episkey charm while you were sleeping. You look as normal as ever.”   
“Oh.” He sat up and strode over to the mirror that hung on the wall. “Oh you saint.” He grinned as he turned to face Hermione. She didn’t return his smile.   
“I feel horrible.” She pouted.   
“You didn’t break my nose.”   
“I might as well have.” She whimpered.   
“Granger. It’s not your fault you dated a rabid bulldog.” Draco stepped towards her to pull her into a deep hug.   
“I’ve never known him to be like that.” She sniffled. “How horrible you looked last night.” She looked up into his grey eyes.   
“Stop fussing.” He kissed the top of her head. “I’m right as new.” He said and she burrowed her head right into his chest. 

 

“What’s your long game here?” Pansy’s intended words were muffles as a sucker handle stuck out of her mouth. Her shoes were propped up on Draco’s desk.   
“What long game?”   
“What was the point in that, Draco?” She prodded.   
“Get your filthy shoes off of my desk.”   
“They’re new!” She whined, but pulled her feet off regardless.   
“My long game is nothing.” He said sifting through paperwork ignoring the annoying “pops” emitting from Pansy’s mouth as she enjoyed her sucker like a dumb toddler across from Draco.   
“Well.” Pansy sighed. “What’s the whole point of getting your face rearranged by Weasley over Granger?”   
“You are the noisiest witch I’ve ever known.”   
“Thanks.” She smiled.   
“Not a compliment.” He shot back.   
“So?”   
“Pansy- will you leave me alone for at least an hour to get some work down if I tell you about my personal life?”   
“Draco, I am your personal life.” Draco glared at her. “But yes.”   
“I just don’t wanted the satisfaction of watching Weasley realize that he can’t have everything in life.”   
“That’s it?” Pansy scoffed. “That’s lame, Draco. I thought we were past that shit.”   
“Hey.” He smiled brightly at his childlike friend across the desk. “When you married Blaise because of his pureblood father did I call you a shallow succubus?”   
“Rude.” She stood from the chair and strolled towards the door. “But point taken.” 

 

“Hey.” Three knocks on the frame of the doorway and broke Draco’s train of thought as he worked, diligently on a new piece of legislation for review by the Wizengamot.   
“Pansy no. Go away.” He said, eyes to paper.   
“She went home an hour ago.” Hermione answered. “It’s 8 o’clock.” He looked up from his paper and noticed the entire office was empty except the frizzy haired witch who stood before him.   
“Oh.” He blinked. He looked from her to the paper in front of him.   
“Maybe a break?” She offered him a cup of warm tea and a smile.   
“You’re getting soft on me, Granger.” He smirked but stood to accept the cup from her hands.   
“You wish.” She shot back but her eyes glittered when she looked up at him. He felt a wince in his stomach. He ignored it and pulled her in, setting the cup of tea on his desk.   
“Prove it.” He grabbed her and pulled it back so to reveal her neck to him.   
“Draco.” She half laughed, half scolded him.   
“Nobody’s here.” He growled into her ear.   
“Seriously.” SHe laid her eyes on him and they burned with a steely reserve.   
“Fine.” He said, waved his wand and watched the windows of his office darken in a familiar way. He pulled Hermione back and waved his wand watching the door to his office slam shut.   
“How many times have you done this?” She eyed him, seriously.   
“Don’t ask questions, Granger.” He said swinging her around and bending her over his desk.   
“Draco-”  
“Sh!” He said, and she let out a moan as his hand connected with her backside in a deliciously familiar way.   
“Do what I say, Granger.” He said sternly, turning her to face him. “Take off that horrendous skirt.” She followed his orders, disrobing completely. She stuck her thumbs into the waistband of her tights, above to pull them down when he stopped her.   
“Leave those on.” He said. “Turn around.” She felt her knees weakened as he ordered her around. She felt a fire burn inside of her chest and looked back at him, determinedly with a fire in her breath.   
“Merlin, Granger.” He cocked his head to the side and let a grin spread across his face. “Someone is feeling a bit naughty tonight.”   
She grabbed her hair in a bunch, Pulled it to one side of her head, leaned over Dracos desk and looked back at him with a devilish grin. “Yeah.” She bit her bottom lip. “I am.”


	7. The one where Ron gets some Rondemption

Ron walked, hurriedly, from the bar, one fist balled up and the other limply hanging, bruised and sore. He was breathing hard and quick and he was fully aware when he entered the next bar that he appeared menacing.   
“Take it easy, mate.” An irish muggle laid a warning hand on Ron’s shoulder and he rolled it off. “Oy.” The muggle said. “You give me cheek and I’ll have to throw ya out.”   
“Aye.” Ron shot back. “S’not what your mum told me last night.” 

Ron found himself walking the streets of muggle London with a burning fire in his chest. He wanted to punch something else but he knew better. He kept replaying the crack of Malfoy’s nose being shunted out of place. His other fist clenched tighter. Part of him wanted to go to Hermione’s and yell at her for having the worst decision making skills these days but this was in a fictional reality where he and Hermione were still close enough for it to not be weird.   
Most of him, though, wanted to be at Luna’s watching her roll weed into tiny papers and letting her melt away his anger with the way she said his name and closed her eyes and made up songs about him on the spot. He needed to be on her fire escape peering across the alley for Miss Maebe’s pet kneazle and listening as Luna pointed out all of the constellations that she had memorized in astrology.   
He hated Draco.   
He hated himself- if he were being honest. But he wasn’t. Not yet, at least.   
He decided to storm back to his flat against his better judgement and check his phone. Just in case- he didn’t dare admit to himself but in a small corner of the back of his mind- Luna was calling him, worried that he’d mistook her silence as he left. 

 

He slammed the front door and leaned against it, closing his eyes and just listening. He heard the distant buzzing of his phone being muffled under a hoodie. He counted to three and walked to his bedroom. He stomach sank as his screen revealed three text messages, none from Luna.   
Harry, Seamus and Dean were all calling him to a pub in Diagon Alley. Four hours ago, of course, but Ron couldn’t think of anywhere else he’d like to be less than alone in his flat with his thoughts. 

 

 

“Whoa, catch your breath, Mate.” Harry’s eyebrows furrowed when Ron walked into the bar.   
“What’s with him?” Saemus asked, jovially and Ron sat down with a thud.   
“What happened?” Harry asked, concern plainly written across his face. Ron sighed deeply and grabbed a pitcher of beer with his injured hand, pouring himself a glass as Dean winced and asked who got the blunt end of his fist.   
Ron, reluctantly but with almost no choice, relived his horrendous evening to a captivated audience who, instead of laughing at him, grimaced and shouted profanities at all of the right times. 

 

 

 

 

It was 3am. Ron was aware it wasn’t okay to show up like this after skiving off like he had.   
“Just go talk to her, mate.” Harry said once Seamus and Dean parted ways with them and he felt he could confide in him. “You can’t pull a Lavender all over again.”   
“I’m pretty sure I’m the Lavender in this situation.” Ron groaned with a sinking feeling.   
“Luna’s better than you.” Harry smirked. “She’d never pretend to sleep every time you came round.” 

Here he was. Staring at the daunting flight of wooden steps that led up to that blue door. He turned away and back twice before deciding to leave it up to a coin the way Harry had taught him.   
“What does that side up mean?” A dreamy voice came from behind.   
“Bloody hell!” Ron yelped He turned to see Luna looking over his shoulder at the coin that lay face up on the ground.   
“It meant to come up.” He said, annoyed. “But not I’ve got no choice because I need a calming draught.”   
Luna laughed. “You don’t need to flip a sickle for permission.” She led him up her stairs and into her kitchen as she poured a warm tea and filtered through her cabinets to find a tonic that was tucked away in back.   
“I don’t use calming draughts often so tell me if you need a second dose. I’m sure if lost some of is strength over time.” She smiled at him, dripping two drops into his tea.   
“Thanks.” He said, his hands shaking from nerves- not from the scare Luna gave him.   
“Wow.” She said, catching sight of his bloody and bruised knuckles. “Need me to bandage that? I’m no good at healing magic.” She smiled.   
“That’d…” He felt a wave of warmth wash over him and wasn’t certain if it was from Luna’s presence or the calming draught. “I’d like that.” He heard her scurry and mess around in her bathroom before returning with a wrap to tape up his hand.   
“What’s that from?” She asked him, not looking up at his face as she worked to secure the wrap around his hand.   
“Nothing.” He lied. “Why were you out this late?”   
“No reason.” She said back.   
“Fine.” He looked up at her ceiling and took his hand from her to cross his arms across his chest.   
“Well I’m certainly not going to share with someone who’s so immediately dishonest.” She pulled his hand back to rest in her lap.   
“I was-” He stole a glance at her quickly and noticed she wasn’t exactly paying him the usual amount of attention she did. “Some git was saying horrible things in a bar.”   
“A drunk man was saying rude things to you?” She asked, studying his face.   
“Yes.” He said resolutely.   
“Okay. I’ll tell you a partial truth as well. I needed some air.”   
“Oh Luna, come on.” He crossed his arms again.   
“People can only ever be honest when honesty is given back.” She said lightly and he felt himself huff.   
“I ran into Malfoy, okay?” He spat. “Happy?”   
“Not at all.” She said, meeting his eyes. “Why did you punch him, Ron?” He had wanted her to look at him before but now it felt like her eyes were burning holes into him. She didn’t have a trace of anger on her face but her tone seemed… sad.  
“He was saying disgusting things.”  
“About Hermione?” She said and his eyes shot to her mouth, studying the slight frown that anyone else would barely notice as the name tumbled off of her lips.   
“It was really gross- Luna. It wasn’t something anyone would want to hear.”   
“I believe you.” She said, grabbing his hand back and he let her.   
“I was out tonight because I needed to talk to a friend.” She once again was studying his face.   
“Oh?”   
“A friends of sorts, yes.” She watched him carefully and he kept wanting to pull his hand from her grips, nervous about what was to come.   
“Listen, Luna. Can we just forget about all of what I said earlier.” He said, barely breathing he was watching her reaction so intently. But she didn’t seem to pull her eyes from his or act dodgy in any way he could discern.   
“Come out on the porch with me?”

 

Luna swung her legs, carelessly, as she inhaled, deeply and let her fingers dance through the deep cloud of smoke that exited her gently parted lips. Effortless, Ron thought. Bloody good time for her to feel so carefree.   
“There he is.” Luna smiled and Ron furrowed his eyebrows.   
“What’re you on about?”   
“Look.” She tugged the sleeve of his shirt and pointed into the window of the alleyway at a large auburn cat that Ron knew, distinctly, to be some part kneazle. The face was large and square and had the look quality of a dragon and slow, determined eyes that watched Luna intensely.   
“Blimey, he looks like he wants to take a bite right out of us.” Ron sneered. “Ugly mug.”   
“Ron.” Luna laughed. “I don’t think she lets him out of the house. He’s probably starving for something fresh.”   
“Oh gross.” Ron laughed back. “Kneazles are more trouble than they’re worth, that’s for sure.” He exhaled, rolling his eyes and leaning over to take a puff of Luna’s joint.   
“It’s almost sunrise.” He heard her whisper in his ear and felt his flesh tingle.   
“Yeah?” He exhaled only coughing a little this time.   
“Want to watch?” 

 

 

Luna was pulling him up the hill, his arm hostage to her grip- which was surprisingly mighty for such a delicate looking person.   
“Don’t give up just yet, Ronald.” She laughed dreamily.   
“I’m just so tired.” He slumped and whined as the rush of whiskey in his veins had worn off and the adrenaline of punching malfoy no longer lingered.   
“Just wait.” She called back even though he was only an arm’s length behind her. She found the willow that she so often came to and the spot underneath it where two particularly large roots parted in a perfect curvature to nestle a person.   
“Here.” She sat him down. “You can have my spot.” She watched him lean back against the tree and sat herself down between his knees. He pulled a hand around her shoulders so that she leaned against him.   
“I missed you.” He said, softly in her ear.   
“You were gone for 12 hours.” She replied, laughing lazily.   
“But I was upset.” He yawned. “Time goes so slow when you’re upset.” She felt his breathing steady as she leaned back against his chest.   
“Ron, I know I didn’t say anything back.” She watched as the warm reddish orange edge of the sun started peeking over the horizon. She heard Ron grunt and say, sleepily, “Don’t worry, Lun. I just said it ‘cause I meant it. You don’t have to say it back.”   
She smiled and watched the orange of the gun grow a little brighter minute by minute.   
“You’re like the sun, Ron.” She sighed. “It takes it’s time to fully appear but when it does you never want the warmth it brings to go away.” She looked upward to see his eyes closed, his breathing slow and she let herself turn so her head rested exactly on his chest. “And I do love you.” 

 

 

Ron woke on Friday morning to a knock at his door- it was a furious pounding and he was startled from his dreams.   
“That doesn’t sound like good news.” Luna said softly without lifting her eyelids. He brushed past the two pots of plants Luna had hung in his hallway when she came over the day before. 

“It has none of your personality.” She smiled, looking around at his flat. “No wonder we never stay here.”   
“I just-” He scratched his head, embarrassed, “I’m still working on it, really.” But he wasn’t. He had lived here for two years and never made it home. He always thought that this flat would be a short term stop before he inevitably bought a house with Hermione, which he wasn’t going to talk to Luna about.   
“Just a little more sunshine.” She smiled, pulling his shades up. “That’s all it needs, really.” He sighed, thankful she wasn’t repulsed enough to run clear out the door. 

“Hell-” Ron answered the door and dropped any thought that may have been racing through his mind immediately. “Bloody hell what are you doing here?” He looked around outside for a sign that this was a bad joke but alas- Hermione Granger stood at his door looking furious for a start and holding something in his fist.   
“You know what this is, Ronald Weasley?” She shook the grubby looking thing in his face, growing redder by the moment herself.   
“Why the hell would I?” He swatted the cloth away and made a face at her.   
“It’s the towel I had to use to ice down Malfoy’s face last night.”   
“Oh.” Ron smiled. “Well you didn’t have to. Coulda’ left him looking a right state. Worse for wear always looked better on Malfoy.”   
“Oh you- Ronald- I swear…. You - Agghh.” Hermione sputtered and stomped. “You’re lucky he isn’t going to make a big deal about this.   
“Well you can’t tell your daddy to fix things when he’s locked up in Azkaban, so I wasn’t actually worried.” Ron laughed. Hermione looked enraged.   
“Ron. You can’t go around punching people.”   
“Well I don’t, mate. Not without reason.”   
“You had no reason to hunt Malfoy down like that just because you felt wronged.”   
“Hunt Malfoy down? Bloody hell, Hermione. Accidentally walking into the wrong pub doesn’t make me some kind of hot tempered maniac.”   
“You came at him like one!” She yelled now, her voice at a pitch so that Ron’s flat neighbors were stomping at him to from above.   
“He was being horrible!” Ron yelled back. “He was- oh blimey. You always think I overreact or make shit up about Malfoy anyway.” He waved a hand at her. “He was being worse than a git. But apparently that’s your type, these days.”   
“Oh- you,” She started, staring daggers at him.   
“Would you like some tea?” A small feathery voice came from under the arm that Ron was holding the door open with. “I’ve just brought over some things.”   
“She’s just brought over some things?” Hermione seethed with a wild look in her eye, her unkempt hair flying with every movement.   
“I think it’s best ya’ go, Hermione.” Ron said looking from her to Luna, warily. Luna looked unbothered by Hermione’s wild rage and, in fact, if Ron was gaging correctly he could see a hint of relaxed contentment in those huge blue eyes and Luna stretched a little pulling attention to the fact that she had on both a holey t-shirt that was much too big for her that said “Academy of Dragonologists in training. Romania 1992” from a visit to Charlie’s and some vividly orange pants that Luna insisted on wearing. Old Chudley Cannon logos over the entire both legs. They were baggy on her even though on Ron they now only went slightly past his calf.   
“Nice one.” Hermione narrowed her eyes at Ron and he knew very well she was commenting on his choice in company.   
“Okay, Hermione.” He sighed. “I really don’t feel like doing this.”   
“Well you did last night.” She spat. “You didn’t hold back at all, from the looks of it.”   
“I’m gonna’ close the door now, Hermione.”   
“Oh sod off, Ronald.” Hermione growled. “Don’t act all calm and unbothered.”   
“Have a wonderful day Hermione!” Luna called outwardly as Ron shut the door. He waited, listening for Hermione’s heavy, angry footsteps and only looked down at Luna once he knew she was well away from the door.   
Without realizing it he had started laughing as he looked at Luna, who apparently had had no idea this entire interaction was a negative one.   
“Read the room, Looney.” He chortled. “Read the room.”   
Luna looked around and gazed back at him, expectantly.   
“Bloody hell.” Ron laughed, rubbing his forehead. He swooped his arms down around her and lifted her up, causing her fits of laughter as she carried her off to his bedroom yelling that he loved her the entire way there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Idk if you guys can tell but i started this not really caring and right now I just want Ron to be happy


	8. The Human League on repeat

Pansy Parkinson knew exactly every time in his life Draco Malfoy had lied. It was a gift of Pansy’s, reading Draco like that. His tells were little things like a nose scratch, a quick shake to get hair (that wasn’t in his face in the first place) out of his face. Also small subtleties like if he laughed at an odd place in his sentence. He was always doing something to distract from the fact that his voice shifted mid sentence, every time he strayed from truth.  
The first time he told her a big lie- one that mattered, was during their second year when they had snuck out of the common room to walk the length of the lake together. She had left her dormitory to escape the snores and coughs that were keeping her from a restless night of poor sleep. She found a still chubby cheeked Draco picking at his nails in from of the common room fire. He told her he just couldn’t sleep and if she needed, he would stay up with her- but she could tell there was no way he had planned on sleeping that night anyway.   
As they laughed under the moonlight, Draco pointing to the water and trying to convince Pansy that he had really just seen the giant squid heading towards her, she asked him if he thought his father loved him. He said yes but his voice said otherwise.   
The second time she caught him really lying was during their sixth year when she asked if she really was his girlfriend. He shooed her away with a bored expression and told her “Of course, don’t be stupid.” But he never looked her once in her face. She held her head high, though, and never let herself be fooled that what she had seen was just her overreacting. She continued to date Draco, knowing his heart was elsewhere and his mind too occupied to ever really belong to someone right then- that didn’t stop her from lording over Millicent Bulstrode every time Millie made fun of Pansy's absent father.   
“At least I’m not the size and weight of a young whale.” Pansy sneered. “I can get a man to love me, and I have. What have you got, Millicent? Besides the IQ of a donut and the fat content, to boot.” She watched Millicent grow red in the face and hold back tears. As an adult, although she’d never admit it, this shamed Pansy. The way she constantly tore down the women around her, always fighting for somebody’s affection- always a man’s, but never a friends.   
So Draco had lied to Pansy Parkinson two times and she had let him get away with it- he had lied to the entirety of his friends so much more that she hadn’t bothered keeping count. Every time he spoke in front of the Slytherin Quidditch team he was telling some form of lie. She often times would ignore this horrible habit of his, more embarrassed by the fact that he felt so inadequate he needed to create fallacies in order to feel important. 

 

Pansy studied him that day as she sat in his office that day and watched him lie, horribly, about something, avoiding her gaze and staring down at parchments that she knew to be months old memos as if he were checking them for the finest of clues to some mystery.   
She looked out at Granger, watching her body language as she purposely kept her back to his windows. She had come in late that day, ruffled. Different in some way as if something had changed in her eyes. She didn’t retort when Pansy asked if she’d gotten dressed in the dark.   
“I’m just trying to heeeelp.” Pansy leered over to watch as Hermione had shuffled some papers away. Her face was pale instead of the golden olive tone that annoyed Pansy so much. 

“Because you couldn’t catch color if you landed on the sun?” Draco once sneered when Pansy commented that the mudblood’s veins must be surface level because her skin was dark, too.   
Pansy let Draco get one more nasty comment in before she really took the hint that she was unwelcome.   
“He’s in a mood.” Pansy muttered, saddling up next to her desk mate. Hermione stared downward with an iron determination. “And so are you, I see.” sighed threw her sucker in the trash and lifted a quill from her desk, watching Hermione write with a muggle ink pen. She wet the tip of the quill and muttered to herself (but also to Hermione) that they should really trade side of the bed next time since they’ve both disagreed with the one they chose last night.   
Hermione shot her a glare. “Just lay off it, Pansy. It’s been a rough few days.” Pansy shrugged in response.   
“Wow… two of the tensest people I’ve ever met.” Pansy sighed but decidedly kept the “This is gonna’ be great” to herself and made sure Hermione didn’t catch a glimpse of her eye roll. 

 

“Do you get shirtless around her?” Pansy asked Draco as she, Draco and Blaise sat around the small table in the corner of their favorite pub in Knockturn Alley.   
“What kind of a question is that?” Blaise eyes shot across the table.   
“The kind of question you ask someone who has a dark mark.” She gave Blaise an “are you seriously jealous right now?” look and rolled her eyes. “Especially someone who’s having regular intercourse with one of the people who hunted the dark lord for the better of, I don’t know, seven whole years.”   
“Right.” Blaise sipped his gin quietly and stared ahead at Draco who was rolling up his sleeves in one of the only places he could do so without garnering glares and scoffs.   
“So?” Pansy pushed on.   
“So, what, Pansy?” Draco sneered and the silence became stoney.   
“Does she look at it? Does she care?”   
“Why are you suddenly so interested in my love life, Parkinson?” Draco shot.   
“Would you consider this a love life?”   
“Oh shut up, Pansy. You know what I meant.”   
“I plainly fail to understand.” She blinked her big green eyes at him.   
“Pansy just let it go.” Blaise urged her. “It’s not your business.”   
“Thank you.” Draco cheersed his friend and sat back farther on his chair, never fully relaxed though.   
“I’m sorry how am I the only person curious as to how this entire shit show is going to end? Much less do I want to be working on a case with her when you decide you’ve grown bored and tired of her.” Pansy pushed her drink away.   
“Will you keep your voice down, babe?” Blaise had noticed the much-too-young witches at the bar sneaking looks at them and giggling to themselves.   
“Babe.” She panned to Blaise. “Will you shut up for a minute?” Blaise looked affronted but sat back and drank his gin with his arms as close to crossed as he could manage while still keep one tightly gripped on his glass.   
“So what? You’d like me to keep toying around until you figure out who’s cursed random trash around London?” Draco laughed. “That could be years, at the rate you work.”   
“Draco you’re acting as dense as a mountain troll right now,” Pansy raised out of her chair at once. “I have stood by you for years watching you treat people like objects and servants and your mother may adore you for it but I worked hard for my spot at the ministry.” Her chest heaved with annoyance and frustration. “I like my job and I enjoy working with Granger, believe it or not-” She held a hand out to Zabini so that he could not interject or tell her to quiet. “I will not sit idly by and watch you do what you always do.”   
“And? That would be?” He narrowed his eyes as he spoke to her. He attempted to play it off cooly but she could see anger flicker behind his eyes.   
“You fuck it up, Draco!” She accidentally shrieked. Blaise tugged her arm and she gave in, sitting back down at the table. “You fuck it up.” She lowered her voice and leaned in to the table. “You did it with Astoria and you actually liked her. So just let me in on what your game plan is here because when it goes catastrophic- which it will- I want to be prepared for the hailstorm of silence I have to endure from Granger until she trusts me again. Because believe it or not, Draco, your actions reflect on me and affect me. Get that through your head for once in your life. Salazar's sake.” She sat back, crossed her arms, and looked from Draco’s steely and stern stubborn expression to Blaise’s shocked one.   
“I have to go anyway.” Draco stood up, not looking at either of them. “It’s been a delight.” He threw a few galleons down on the table beside Pansy, laying a hand on her shoulder, “As always, Mrs. Zabini.” 

 

 

 

 

 

Draco watched the minutes pass by on the watch his mother gave to him when he father was carted to prison. He could recall her “You’re the man of the family now.” speech as if it were yesterday. He watched her settle herself at the far end of the table and lay a silk napkin at her lap.   
“How was work this week?” She asked, cutting into the steak that had had apparated on her plate from the kitchen.  
“Tedious.”   
“And your weekend?” She said before taking the smallest bite possible and chewing slowly and deliberately.   
“Same. As always.” He said, finally picking up his utensils and starting in on his own plate of food. It was the same conversation every Sunday. His mother would ask him questions to which she didn’t care about the answer and he would give her vague half answers and they would eat in silence.   
“How’s Pansy?” She continued.   
“Normal.” He replied through half-chewed steak.   
“And Blaise?”   
“Same.” seemed to be his answer more often than anything else.   
“I heard from Gregory Goyle’s mother, a few days ago.” Narcissa said in a plain voice but Draco’s attention had moved from his plate to her.   
“Well that’s nice for you.”   
“He met someone in Bulgaria. They’re set to marry within the year.”   
“Well that’s nice for him, too, then.”   
“Draco.” She set her fork and knife down and he braced himself, already bothered by the women in his life these past couple of days. “You do plan on carrying on the Malfoy name, don’t you?”   
“Merlin, mother. Is it 1902?” He scoffed. “You’d think the healing field had advanced none and I was approaching the end of my projected life span.”   
“Draco.” She looked at him sternly. “When you’re father gets home from Azkaban I want him to have grandsons- heirs to the Malfoy-”  
“Mother!” Draco set his fork and knife down violently. “If father still knows his own name upon his release you’ll be fortunate.”   
“Draco Lucius Malfoy!” She shrieked reminding him of Pansy but he flinched, nonetheless.   
“Sorry.” He said but felt his veins running cold. He checked his watch. “I’m running late.”   
“Draco- finish your meal,” She had said with a pleading tone but he was already pushing himself backwards and rising from his seat.   
“I’ll see you next week.” He said numbly but found himself, as routine, walking over to his mother to kiss her forehead before his feet carried him down the steps of the Malfoy Manor towards the sleek, black ministry-official car.   
“Goodnight, Mr. Malfoy.” The doorman called down to him from the huge mansion doors. He returned no such sentiment as the ministry car pulled away and he felt the manor shrink into the distance behind him. 

 

 

 

Hermione had spent the first hours of Sunday reading a book. First in bed, then on her couch. Then her feet on the wall and her head hanging off of the couch. At the first sight of a dustball she immediately started scourgifying her flat. It took little to no time for her small, cute apartment to become speck free. She called her mother who, on the other hand, was running a very loud vacuum and fretting over a blown fuse. Hermione promised her mother she’d come round for dinner during the week and fix her vacuum when Hermione really knew what she was going to do was update all of the charms she had placed around the Granger residence that she had put in place on her last visit- little spells and enchantments that assured Hermione that her parents would have little to nothing to worry about at home as their dental practice was as busy as ever.   
After ringing Ginny twice receiving no answer Hermione was left to do the inevitable. Wonder what Weasley Family Dinner was like tonight.   
The first three months of the breakup was spent in Bulgaria having a laugh with Ginny and Viktor. The moment she stepped foot back in England, though, Hermione spent every sunday distracting herself from thinking about who was on Molly’s bad side that week and whether or not Charlie would show up, battered and bruised with wild tales. She was curious about what Bill and Fleur's first child looked like and whether Teddy Lupin had started to resemble Remus or if the constantly changing hair color distracted from his soft, sincere facial features.   
The moment she found herself questioning whether or not Luna was there she knew she could no longer sit around in her apartment any longer.   
She sat in her bedroom, surveying her the hair oils and curling and straightening tools, eyeshadows and face palettes- all of which she bought once Ginny had graduated from Hogwarts and promised Hermione she would officially be old enough to apparate from bar to bar and enjoy her freedom.   
“Bollocks.” She said and sat, sighing. She looked up at herself in the mirror.   
“It’s gonna be alright.” She told herself. “Oh bloody hell, Granger.” She said, taking a brush, menacingly to her hair. “You’re better than this.” 

Hermione surveyed the damage in the mirror. She turned her head from side to side to admire her cheekbones as they shimmered in the light of the setting sun. The deep blue dress that Ginny had left in her closet after a particularly scandalous night out at a ChippenDales show hugged her curves far differently than it had, Ginny. Ginny’s toned muscles displayed in the fabric the way Hermione assumed an oiled athlete would look, but here Hermione was staring at a waist-hip ratio she didn’t quite realize she had.   
“Tights or no tights?” She asked herself in the mirror but had made up her mind even   
before the words left her mouth.   
She grabbed a small purse, deciding that even on a Sunday night there was bound to something better out in the city than wallowing in lonesomeness.   
She swung her front door open and let out a frightened yelp as a troubled looking Draco stood, hand up- ready to knock.   
“Fos god’s sake!” She yelled, gathering herself and standing up straight again, having fumbled in her heels temporarily.   
“Was I-” He surveyed her, blatantly confused, and checked his watch. “Hermione it’s 9pm.”   
“I’m well aware.”   
“It’s Sunday.” He laughed, looking around behind him at the street as if wondering whether someone was approaching.   
“Yes, Draco. Would you happen to have any other pertinent information at the time?” She was losing her patience, wondering what he was doing here.   
“Well- and pardon my forwardness- but… You’re dressed like the embodiment of Saturday night.”   
Without fail her face grew hot. “Thanks, Malfoy.” She said closing the door and turning around. She was pulling her earrings off when the door opened and closed behind her and he pulled her around, laughing.   
“I wasn’t implying you look bad!”   
“I apologize.” She huffed. “I must have misinterpreted you laughing at me to my face.”   
“Put your earring back in Granger, you look stupid with one hanging off and the other missing.” Draco smiled at her in an odd way but she did it, glaring at him all the way.   
“Were you?” He cocked his head, a laugh still playing in his light eyes. “Were you heading out on a date?”   
“Probably.” She had meant to say “possibly.”   
“Oh?” He furrowed his eyebrows while failing to stop his adam's apple from bouncing, not concealing his full blown amusement. “So?” He turned and traced his fingers along the shelves lining Hermione’s walls that were filled with pictures of her parents, her cousins and Her, Harry and Ron, chubby cheeks and 11-years-old. “You were just going to walk out and grab a bloke off the street, or?”   
“I could have had a date.” She shot at him, frustrated. Here he was acting as if the idea of someone being interested in her was hilarious.   
“What? Could have? Oh please, don’t tell me I’m stopping you, Granger.” He turned to smile at her with an unmistakable charm of someone who completely had the upper hand in the situation.   
“Well. Then don’t show up on my doorstep when I’m trying to leave.” She said. He stared at her, absorbing the electricity that waved off of her in a completely different way than the other women in his life. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her over to him, rolling his eyes and grinning at the same time. He leaned down and laid into her with a kiss filled with amusement and enjoyment. She leaned into him and started moving her hands down his stomach. He grabbed her hands in his and parted his lips from hers.   
“Would really hate to waste this outfit, Granger.” He whispered to her and pushed himself back to look at her. “I’ve got a place I want to show you.”


	9. Lavarti Prown Beesh

Lavender Brown sat in the almost stifling humidity that was Madam Puddifoot’s. She adjusted her halter top every few moments, checking her phone obsessively and smoothing her baby hairs while thankful for the reflective back of the sugar spoon that was set on her table alongside a caddy of creams and sugars and honeys.   
She felt her braids, thankfully still tight and crisp, and tried, failing horribly, to look relaxed. 

Lavender saw two heads of black hair bob, in the same tempo, down the main road of Hogsmeade and her heart leapt brightly. Padma, she saw, wore her hair plaited into one long illustrious braid. She wore minimal makeup, as always, and a flowing blouse with a pair of electric blue pants.   
Pavarti, on the other hand, had done something completely different. Her hair was cut into a blunt bob that framed her face absolutely perfectly and then dyed the most beautiful hues of pastel purple. Lavender wanted to die. She shrank into her seat and fumbled with her sugar spoon as if having never noticed the Patil twins.   
A light and cheery ring alerted the entire tea shop to the Patil twins arrival. When Lavender had counted to five she thought it was as close to a cool-calm-collected she would get and feigned surprise as the twins walked up to her table.   
“Padma! Parvati!” She stood to greet them, hugging Padma naturally and embracing Parvati is a loose and cold sort of way all the while doing her best impression of a young woman who was in control of herself.   
“Oh I’ve missed you so much.” Parvati lingered in their hug longer than Lavender would have liked.   
“You too, of course.” She laughed awkwardly.   
“How was California?” Padma asked Lavender while scooting a third chair up to their table.   
“Oh wonderful!” She startled herself with how excited her words came out, internally she cursed herself.  
“Oh please, tell us all about it.” Parvati’s eyes widened and took the chair across from Lavender.   
“We’ll take two coffees!” Padma waved at Madam Puddifoot who was now hurrying over in an excited manner ready to fawn over how grown they looked.   
“Oh my dears! I’ve missed your precious giggling and adorable smiles!” Lavender blushed but Parvati replied “We’ve missed you too, Madam Puddifoot! How’s business been?”   
“Oh so much busier since the war, people are finally feeling at ease here.”   
“OH that’s so great to hear.” Padma smiled up warmly.   
“Oh! But the coffees, my dears. I’ll be right out with them. Room for cream in those?”   
“Yeah” “No” They both answered at once. “Not mine.” Pavarti smiled. Lavender raised an eyebrow. “I’m strictly black coffee these days.” Pavarti grinned in response to Lavender’s questioning look.   
“Okay so please.” Pavarti reached and touched Lavender’s arm. “Tell us everything.” Lavender pulled her arm back, feeling warm enough from the humidity of the tea shop that she figured she needn’t added warmth. 

 

The three girls sat gossiping about Lavender’s new life in California while Pavarti chimed in about Japan’s nightlife every once in a while. Padma, on the other hand, only divulged in her internship at the Paris Healers’ Academy when asked and kept checking her watch.   
“I’ve got to be in London for a meeting with someone from St. Mungo’s in about five minutes.” She smiled. “I’ve got to hurry. Apparition only does so much when I’m not certain the address is correct.” She rolled her eyes.   
“Love you, P!” Pavarti said as Padma stood to leave.   
“You too. Lavender, it’s been wonderful. Please do come back more often.” Lavender felt a little odd at such a formal goodbye but returned the sentiment just the same and dreaded her fully leaving. “By the way, P, catch her up on the gossip.” 

 

“I can’t believe Neville’s getting married first of all of us.” Pavarti said while tracing her finger around the rim of her coffee mug.   
“I know, right? And to Hannah Abbott of all people.”   
“To be fair, Hannah seems exactly his type. She deserves a guy like him.”  
“Yeah…”   
Lavender went back to fidgeting with a sugar spoon and avoiding Parvati's eye contact.   
“Listen.” Pavarti said, taking Padma’s chair and scooching closer. “I know I stopped talking after we graduated. That’s all on me. I’m so sorry.”   
“Are we really gonna’ do this here?” Lavender looked around to see if anyone was close enough to listen in.   
“Lavender. We have to talk about it sometime.”   
“Great.” She sighed and fell back, slumping. “Go for it. Tell me how weird it was.”   
“No- Lav. No- it wasn’t about you, or your condition-”  
“-It’s always about that.” Lavender cut her off short feeling a temper rise within her.   
“-I swear.”   
“Stop.” Lavender pushed back and stood, laying a galleon and a sickle on the table and said “Tell Madam Puddifoot I loved the latte.”   
“Lav!” 

Lavender pushed down the main road in Hogsmeade, planning to stop into The Three Broomsticks but needed to walk a little more, feeling a steamy mist around her eyes. The late September heat was frustrating her but the cause of the well of new tears was fully and completely about Parvati Patil. 

“Lav!” She heard her voice bounce from running. Lavender turned on the spot to see Parvati chasing her down, trying to keep her purse on her shoulder. “Don’t just leave like that. Don’t just walk away from me.”   
“You did. Easily.”   
“You know it was never easy, Lavender. Don’t pull that shit with me.” Parvati stood in front of her, breathing heavily from running but her gaze was strong and stubborn.   
“Okay, Parvati. Then, please, let me know. If it weren’t for my lycanthropy would you have stayed? Would you have come with me?” Lavender watched Parvati’s eyes shift, uncomfortably and turned. “Yep. Thought so.”   
“Lavender!” Parvati yelled out and Lavender stopped one more time, knowing that if Parvati didn’t say something great, she was not going to waste a single moment of her time, a thought or a breath more on this person she had spent 7 years of her life loving.   
“Come here.”   
“What?”   
“Just come with me.”   
“Why?”  
“Lav, don’t be thick. Just take my hand. I’m gonna take you somewhere.” 

 

Lavender looked around at where they had apparated. It was somebody’s flat. It was well decorated and very clean. There was a huge colorful rug and a TV and a few vases of black roses. Parvati went straight to the kitchen and brought back two glasses filled only shortly with brown liquid.   
“Bourbon.”   
“Parv, it’s 2pm.”  
“Bourbon.” She pushed the glass into Lavender’s hand anyway. She accepted without much fight and waited for Parvati to drink before she sipped hers and grimaced.   
“I feel like there was a huge misunderstanding. Sit down.” Parvati nodded towards the couch. Lavender sat but questioned what the point of this was anyway.   
“This is my flat, now.”   
“You’re living in London?”   
“For now, yeah.” Parvati shrugged. “I need a job that allows me to see my parents more often and Padma. I’ve missed them too much.”   
“Okay. Well. That’s nice.”   
“Lavender.” PArvati shifted so that she was cross-legged and facing Lavender on the couch now. “Lav. I left because I had to.”   
Lavender shifted around, feeling overwhelmingly uncomfortable.   
“You know we were closer than friends.”   
Lavender felt a swelling awkwardness she thought no amount of bourbon would allow her to escape.   
“Lav, look at me. I’m being honest, here.”   
“Fine.”   
“I’ve always wanted more from you than I thought you would want from me. Do you know how much I hated Ron Weasley after the excruciating months I had to endure your tonsil-hockey showdowns? You knew.” Parvati stated the last bit with force. “You knew the whole time. You never once cared.”  
“I-”  
“No, you didn’t. I know because you just kept doing it anyway and you never felt sorry.”   
“I never-”  
“Lavender don’t lie to me you’ve always been a shit liar and we both know I’m right. I left because I knew watching you struggle every month and hurt and become something else… I knew I’d stay and care for you and I knew it was going to mean something different for me. I knew-”  
“Parvati, shut up!” Lavender belted out. “You’re making all these assumptions about me and you’ve never once asked me how I felt. You never told me any of this or even gave me a chance.” Lavender watched Parvati’s face change. “I have never dated anyone to hurt you. Or to spite you. I’ve only been with people who I cared about. You never once made it clear how you felt and I have never been a legilimens.”  
“When you left I was fucking gutted. I felt like a freak and untouchable. I only ever went to the states so that I didn’t have to hang around this tiny fucking town and think about every single thing we had ever done together.”   
“-Lavender, I didn’t-”  
“OF COURSE YOU DIDN’T KNOW!” LAvender stood up now not sure she could have contained herself even if she had wanted to. “You never. Fucking. Asked. You’ve never went out on a limb- you never asked anyone out and You never told me you liked me more than a friend. What was I supposed to do? Assault you? Parvati, I kissed you first. I kissed you after the yule ball. I kissed you drunk off of butterbeer and laughing in the dormitory and you acted like it was a fucking joke. Like I was some big idiot who couldn’t control herself. How could I have told you how I felt after that?”   
“Lavender, you have to understand-”  
“Parvati I have waited. I have waited for an owl, a message- hell I waited for you to show up at my door for months after you left for Japan. I waited and waited and waited until I couldn’t fucking wait anymore. So don’t tell me I’m supposed to understand as if you’re this victim and I’m some raging bitch for never making a second mo-” But Lavender’s lips were stopped from saying anymore by the pressure of Parvati who had jumped off of the couch and kissed Lavender with such force that Lavender stumbled a bit.   
Lavender kissed back, and kissed back with passion and heat but pulled away only momentarily to protest-  
“Shut up.” Parvati said, unbuttoning her pants and pulling on Lavender’s shirt. “I’ve been waiting for this since I was 11.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lavender Brown was originally cast as a black girl but once her role became "important" (I.E. about to become a romantic plotline) she suddenly because a blonde white girl and that always annoyed me. I feel like Lavender was carefree and unapologetically feminine in a way that black girls don't get to be portrayed in movies where white people are the main characters and so I wrote Lavender the way I always saw her in my mind. Black. Also can we just talk about how Lavender and Parvati plainly had a wonderful relationship and the amount of time they spent together was wonderful and in my mind they always liked each other but neither made a real move.


	10. A forbidden fruit not so sweet...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things come to a head in the Dramione romance when Draco lets his feelings bubble up and get teh best of his usually composed self.

“What do you think?” Luna twirled around in her smokey living room while Ron watched, amused.   
“Bloody wonderful.” He said, watching her hips move in the pastel yellow dress that hung on her and exuded “Luna Lovegood”.   
“It’s the only one that Hermione didn’t hate.” Luna laughed and sat down atop Ron's lap.   
“I can only imagine.” He rolled his eyes. “Nothing pink.” He did his best impression, “Nothing frilly- nothing girly- no, no no.”   
“Actually,” Luna adjusted herself to be face to face with him. “She was asking for something feminine and form fitting.”   
“Seriously?” He laughed. “Must be possessed.”   
“Mustn’t joke about that, Ronald. Werble-mezbees are constantly taking over wizards and witches every day.”   
“Oh my gaaaahhhhd.” He laughed and pushed her down on the couch before kissing every bit of her pale, wonderful neck.   
“Ronald!” She said, laughing. “The last thing I need to ruin the dress before the wedding.”   
“Oh of course!” He said, getting up and bowing to her. “Let me help you with that like a true gentlemen.” He began unzipping the back and sliding it off of her. “I’ll never get sick of that.” He said.   
“What?”   
“The way you look in nothing but this.” He motioned to her bra and underwear. He bent down over her and kissed her while he took his pants off. “You’re wonderful.”   
“So are you.” She smiled back pulling him down on to her while letting her hand slide between them and find its way to feel him, fully hard and ready for her.   
“Merlin.” He whispered, gasping and shuddering as he moved his hips against hers.   
“Funny,” She laughed. “Thought my name was Luna.”   
“OH shut up.” He laughed back and slid her underwear off, sliding into her warmth and safety. 

 

 

 

 

Hermione screamed loud enough that she heard her neighbors knock on her ceiling in retaliation. She tried to stifle herself but Draco just pounded into her harder and harder, forbidding her to stay silent for every time she groaned instead of yelling, she felt Draco’s hand cause a pleasant stinging on her ass.   
“Hermione don’t you fucking dare be quiet.” He growled at her. “I told you no.”   
“I can’t.” She yelled back breathlessly. “Noise Complaint.” Was all she could muster before a stroke of genius swept over her. She grabbed her wand and screamed out in an ecstasy-fueled volume “Muffliato!” while pointing her wand upward.   
“Fuck,” She heard Draco panting faster and faster and slammed back into him to feel his full length. “Merlin, you.” He gasped. She felt him fill her up, and she pushed back harder and faster now, taking control over the pace and turned to see his eyes closed and the sweat on his forehead as he tried so hard not to come.   
“Draco.” She yelled, a deviant grin spreading on her face. He opened his eyes in time to see the dark display of power that took over the girl in front of him and she watched him, unable to stop it from happening, as he released inside of her with a great yell of pleasure.   
“Inanis Naturale Eius Debentus” She waved her wand over where her reproductive were.   
“Hermione.” Draco pulled her onto her bed with him and he collapsed, breathing hard while wrapped around her. “You’re going to kill me with that.”   
“With what?” She feigned ignorance but held that same dark smile before kissing him, softly.   
“Don’t play dumb.” He rolled his eyes. “When did you get like that?”   
“Like what?” She asked honestly this time.   
“During sex. You’re like someone else.”   
“Oh.” She shrugged. “Nope. That’s still me.” she smiled.   
“I’ve never seen that side of you before.” He smiled and rolled over onto her, kissing her nad tracing his tongue along her lips.   
“You.” She pulled back from him, reading his expression, “Would never see this side of me in potions class.”   
“Too bad.” He smiled before going back in for another long kiss. 

 

Hermione’s alarm clock went off at 2pm. “Shit.” She sat up. “I have about an hour to get ready before the rehearsal dinner.”   
“Skip it.” A bleary-eyed Draco pulled at her arm but she pulled through and got off the bed with determination. “Why is it important anyway?”   
“Draco.” She rolled her eyes, pulling on some underwear and a bra. “It’s the rehearsal dinner. It’s where we collectively learn how to not fuck up the wedding tomorrow.”   
“Oh.” He sighed and rolled over. “Is Weasley going to be there?”   
“Considering he’s a groomsmen, yes.” She said while putting earrings in.   
“Great.” Draco said, coolly. “Is that who you’re paired with?”   
“Well we were going to be but considering the break up appears pretty permanent I think Neville and Hannah have the decency to switch it up a bit. Maybe I’m with Harry, I don’t know. Why do you care?”  
“Ugh. Potter. Listen, has Longbottom leaned out any more or has love made him chubby again?”  
“He looks great.” Hermione smiled. “Handsome as ever.”   
“So not very.” Draco sneered.   
“And you have the best judgement? Of which men are handsome and which aren’t?”   
“Granger, please. I can tell the ugly from the not.”  
“Well Neville’s been his most fanciable self since we left school. He could have his choice of women and he and Hannah are wonderful together.”  
“God.” Draco sat up and started pulling his pants on. “Sap.”  
“Some people just enjoy being around the person they care about.” Hermione glared, now sliding a deep burnt orange dress up and onto her shoulders. “Could you zip?”   
Draco moved over to zip her dress and watched her face from the mirror in front of them, “Do you have a date?”   
“What? I’m a bridesmaid. My date is whoever they’ve paired me off with.”  
“So you might be running off with Weasley tomorrow night?” Draco said. Hermione had not yet told him that it was well and clear within their friend group that he and Luna had become quite cozy.   
“And if I do?”   
“It just seems convenient for you.” He shrugged. “Being paired off with the love of your life and all.”   
“When have I ever said that Ron was the love of my life?”   
“It’s the way you avoid talking about him to me.”  
“Why would I talk to you about my ex-boyfriend?!”   
“I don’t know.”   
“Draco. What are you fucking on about?”   
“I just feel like it’s a really romantic thing that’s happening and then you’re being pushed to be with your ex boyfriend and you’re being really fucking deflective, Granger.”   
“Draco are you seriously jealous right now?”   
“I would not ever be jealous of that filth Weasley.”   
“Well good because he’s been moved on for months now!” Hermione said, now in a passionate stance with her arms on her hips feeling frustrated with Draco for being suddenly weird about everything at this very moment.  
“You never said that.”   
“Is that of interest to you? Am I only interesting to you because you feel like you’re withholding something from Ron?!”  
“No… I just would have appreciated knowing that before this whole conversation even began.”  
“Draco, why would it matter to you? She’s going to be at the wedding there’s no reason for you to be envious of anyone. I’m going to be drinking heavily and watching lovely couples have a wonderful time together.”   
“Well you never even asked me to go with.” Draco crossed his arms. “I could have kept you company.”   
“Are you fucvking kidding me?” Hermione now moved to the vanity where she angrily applied makeup. “Invite you to a wedding with all of my friends who, for all intents and purposes, think that you’re a bully and an evil one at that?”   
“Are you embarrassed of me?”  
“DRACO YOU HAVE LITERALLY TOLD ME YOU WOULDN’T BE SEEN IN PUBLIC WITH ME.” She stood up now, hands waving around dramatically.   
“I said that a long time ago- and I’ve taken you round in public. I’ve taken you to places really private and special to me.” He said, furrowing his eyebrows. “Not that it matters but I’ve done more than you to show that I like you.”  
“You like me?!” Hermione yelled. “This is the first time I’m hearing that.”   
“I didn’t realize my actions weren’t enough for you.” He yelled back now. “I thought you would have gotten that, mudblood, or are you that thick?”   
“DON’T CALL ME THAT.” She had clenched her fists so hard that she felt herself break skin on her palm. “I think you should go. We’re obviously on different pages here.”  
“I guess I should.” He huffed.   
“I’ll owl you later.” She called angrily at his back,.   
“Don’t bother, Granger.” He slammed the door making Hermione’s framed pictures of her and her family shake on the walls.   
“Fuck!” She yelled and sat herself, angrily, on her seat to do her makeup in a hurry. 

 

“And that’ll be that.” The reverend smiled at the wedding party. “From there on out it’s reception and a night full of fun.” He smiled.   
Splendid, Hermione thought. Just fucking splendid.  
“Great!” Hannah smiled and stepped down from the head of the church with Neville who said “Now we can go out to dinner. We’ve set a floo up from here into a nice upscale restaurant near Diagon Alley if everyone's’ alright with Italian?”  
A chorus of excited agreements echoed from the high ceilings. Hermione watched everyone follow Neville to the fireplace in the Reverends quarters of the church. She hung back, taking out her phone to check if she’d had any messages.   
Disappointed she read the inbox folder with no alerts next to it. She pulled up the string of texts under the name DM.   
“Hey…” She compiled and then deleted. “Hey you.” She typed and deleted it even quicker than the last, “Heyyy….” She typed up once more. Her fingers hovered between send and delete.   
“Always just hit send.” A voice came from behind her sending her jumping and accidentally hitting send in the process.   
“Harry!” She yelped. He laughed.  
“What’s up, Hermione? You look so depressed.”   
“Everything sucks,” She slumped into the pew and scooched so Harry could join her. “I feel like when we were 15 everything was really simple. I liked Ron, I was best mates with you and Ginny- everyone got on… now everything is messy and horrible and hard.”  
“First of all, Hermione, nothing was that simple.” Harry pulled her towards him and put a comforting arm around her that she melted into. “You and Ron were horrible at 15- always fighting. I mean constantly Hermione. Most of my stress was from you guys. And I was fighting Voldemort. And Ron’s never had an easy time with you. He always felt like he was competing with someone or something with you. I wanted you guys to give it a real go and succeed but it didn’t work.” Harry shrugged. “It doesn’t mean we can’t all be happy.”   
“It just sucks.” She sighed laid her head on his shoulder. “It’s so easy for him to be with Luna and not feel bad.”   
“Do you feel bad?” Harry looked down at her.   
“Kind of.” She shrugged.   
“Does he make you feel bad?”   
“I don’t know… not really… not at all, actually.”  
“So what’s hard?”  
“He makes it seem like we’re not something and then-”  
“And then acts like how a guy acts when he’s threatened?”   
“I guess.” She shrugged.   
“Hermione. I spent most of my life hating Malfoy.” Harry said. “Like really hating him. He was the worst person I’d ever known- save for Dudley. But I’m 21 now and there was a time when I thought I wouldn’t make it to 17. Dudley and I have a hard relationship still but he’s working on himself and I;m practicing patience every time I visit him. His baby is beautiful, I love my niece but I;d never know that if I just assumed no one could ever change.”   
Hermione say up a little and Harry took his arm from around her to face her. “Hermione, I don’t think Malfoy will ever be the type of person that you deserve. I can’t say that I wasn’t livid when I found out you two were seeing each other but that’s not my place. I can;t stop you and if you want him to be here tomorrow then tell him.”  
“No. I’m going to wait.” She shrugged. “He acted horribly today.” She looked down at her phone screen almost hoping he had already replied.   
“Well…” Harry smiled. “Its Malfoy. What can you expect.”   
“Ugh…” Hermione rolled her eyes and groaned. “I know.”


	11. Neville's Day

Neville paced in the quiet room in the church. He poked his head out and held his breath. Hannah’s family were all talking, happily amongst themselves. He peered out into the seats where his mum and dad would have been, the chair reserved in memory of his Gran. He cleared his throat as helt hot tears sting his eyes.   
“Neville.” A pair of hands landed on both of his shoulders and spun him around. He looked, terrified, into the bright green eyes of Harry who was beaming at him. “Everything is great. You’re going to do well.”   
“I just can’t- what if I forgot my lines?” Neville felt his tongue growing in size and cursed his nerves.   
“He reads ‘em to ya, Nev.” Ron said over Harry’s shoulder. Dean and Seamus let our a huge whoop and popped open a bottle of champagne.   
“That’s for after service!” Harry rolled his eyes.   
“Look at him, mate.” Seamus laughed nodding to Neville. “It’s for his own good.”   
“To Neville and Hannah!” Dean whooped with laughter and poured a glass for each of them.   
“To Neville and Hannah!” Ernie McMillan said a little later than the rest and turned red.   
“Breathe, Neville.” Harry whispered in Neville’s ear as Neville took on huge swallow of the bubbling drink and felt like he’d choke from his throat being so tight.   
“Remember.” Harry added. “If you get nervous just look at her.” Harry clapped Neville’s back as the music started.   
“That’s us, mate.” Ron grabbed Neville’s shoulder and squeezed, reassuringly. Neville took a huge breath and opened the door. 

 

She was perfect, Neville thought. He felt himself beam, watching Hannah walk down the aisle, arm in arm his her father her beautiful blonde hair falling all around her face, dimples visible through her veil. His breath caught in his throat.   
The flowers that were braided through her sun golden hair seemed to only reflect her beauty. She passed pews and Neville heard sniffs but he couldn’t see anything beyond the incredible woman before him. He couldn’t have dreamed a more perfect person. He sighed, releasing the tension he had held in his shoulders.  
“This is it, mate.” Neville felt his best man nudge him and he gulped, holding back his tears.   
Hannah stepped up to meet Neville, holding a hand out and Neville guided her up the steps.   
“I love you so much.” He whispered so only she could hear. The reverend had started the service but Neville could hear absolutely nothing he said.   
Neville repeated his lines, seamlessly as Hannah’s radiant face glowed and any and every worry left his body. He heard a holler of approval from behind him as he said “I do.” and he knew, without a doubt, it was from Ernie McMillan.   
“I do.” Hannah said breathlessly and he watched her chest swell.   
He didn’t hear anyone mutter that it was his turn to kiss the bride but he did it anyway to a chorus of raucous whoops, claps and cheering.   
“I love you.” Hannah laughed when he finally let her go from his strong embrace.   
“You’re perfect.” He told her and looked down at the three empty seats in the front row of the pews without a single doubt in his body or soul that they would all be proud of the man he had become. 

 

 

 

“I lobe you guys so much.” A drunk Neville spouted to Harry, Ron, Seamus and Dean on the side of the dancefloor.   
“We love you too, Neville.” Harry laughed. “We love you too.”   
“I’m so happy you were here today.” He gestured to all four of them. “I’ve never met a better group of guys in my whole life.”   
“Aye!” Ernie McMillan yelled, overhearing him and coming over to join in the circle. Ron swept his eyes over the dancefloor and decided it was an okay time for a refill.   
“A rum and coke” He said to the bartender. “A shot of tequila.” He laid down a galleon but the bartender pushed back “Groomsmen drink for free.”   
‘Splendid. Two shots, then please.” He said bringing a laughto the bartenders face.   
“I’d like a-” A familiar voice came into earshot as Hermione leaned over the bar to study the supply of alcohol before making a choice. “Oh,” she said, turning white as she spotted Ron. “Sorry.” and she turned away.   
“Oy,” He said, grabbing her arm and pulling her back to the bar. “Don’t let me stop you.” He smiled, halfheartedly. “We all need as much liquor as possible today.”   
Hermione laughed and seemed to relax a little.   
“It’s been months anyway, I think we can move past everything.”   
“Agreed.” She shot him an appreciative glance.   
“Hey.” He said eyeing his drink load. “Need a shot?”   
“God.” She gave a huge sigh. “Do I ever.” He laughed and pushed one towards her.   
“How’s Malfoy?” He asked, for the first time in months feeling completely without anger. He watched her cheeks grow red as she looked over his shoulder.   
“Uh.” She tensed up again. “We got in a row yesterday.”  
“Hermione.” Ron threw his head back, laughing. “When will you ever learn that rowing is one of your poor suits.”  
“Excuse me, Ronald.” She shot back. “I don't go around causing fights right and left!”   
“Your track record says different.” He laughed.   
“Oh shut up and do a shot with me.” He said sternly but he caught a glimpse of a smile on her face. 

 

Hermione checked her phone for the fifth time within the hour.   
“Will you stop that.” Harry came up from behind her. “I need a dance.”  
“Where’s Ginny?”  
“Dancing with Dean.” He rolled his eyes. “Come make her jealous with me.” He laughed.   
“Sure.” She laughed back, knowing better.   
“I love this song.” He swayed as she moved closer to him. “It reminds me of summers at the burrow.”  
“I miss the burrow.” Hermione buried her forehead in Harry’s shoulder. “I miss us.”   
“Then come round more. If you think we don’t miss you at christmas you;re bloody dense.”   
“I don’t know if I can.” She sighed.   
“I don’t know if I can,” Harry mocked and she pulled her head back to disagree with him before seeing a glint of icy blonde hair in the doorway of the reception area. Malfoy was holding a drink already and held it up when she saw him. “Isn’t he a bastard?” Harry smiled at her.   
“He is.” She tried looking angry but a smile she couldn’t fight back pushed itself onto her mouth.   
“Pretty handsome, if you ask me. He really pulls off grey like nobody can.”   
“Oh shut up.” She hit Harry’s shoulder, laughing.   
“If you keep him waiting while you dance with another man in front of him, he might just up and leave.” Harry smirked while they swayed together. She said no more and pulled away from him, kissing his cheek.   
“Love you, ‘Mione.” Harry called after her. She felt blush crawl up her neck to her cheeks. She felt her knees get wobbly as she strode up to the cocky grinned bastard that stood sipping a drink and surveying the dancefloor.   
“You know.” Draco drawled. “It’s quite a classy wedding for such quiet people.” He nodded to the centerpieces and decor that played upon the walls around them.   
“Who invited you?” Hermione said, smiling, arms crossed.   
“Well since you were never going to,” Draco sighed self-indulgently, “That Potter kid sent an owl with the time to show up.”   
“And here I show up and he’s stole my girl and I’ve had to watch her kiss him and everything. Always one upping me.”   
Hermione turned to look at Harry who was slow dancing with Ginny once more while they laughed at something heartily and looked at eachother with such a deep love.  
“I’m sorry?” Hermione acted deaf. “Was that ‘my girl’ that just toppled out of your mouth?”   
“Granger, don’t go getting a big ego, now.” He smiled and drank down the last of his drink. “I think we all know who’s really in power between you and I.”   
“Shut up.” She couldn’t have cared less, at that moment, if he wanted to pretend that he was in charge here. He had shown up and Harry had told him to. She was feeling elated.   
“Oh! ‘Scuse me.” A fairy-ish voice full of laughter had bumped into Draco’s arm trying to enter the room sneakily. Luna’s drunkenness had prevented her from being undetected.   
“Oh! Draco Malfoy.” She smiled up at him and Hermione watched Draco make the connection between her and the gangly familiar redhead that was currently wrapped around her waist and pulling her towards the dance floor.   
“That’s who he’s here with?” Draco asked, not hiding the amusement in his voice.   
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Hermione sighed. “It’s a great laugh. Granger alone while Ron and Luna are the talk to the wedding.   
“No,” Draco laughed. “I just can’t believe those two are together.” He smiled, pulling Hermione against him. “Especially when he had someone like you.” And he bent down and kissed her, pulling her onto the dance floor and starting to sway with her, lips locked and the world melting away.


End file.
